Senior BJP leaders meet to discuss future course of party

New Delhi, May 18 (PTI) Amid a question on L K Advani's
future, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders met Monday to
decide the party's next course of action in the wake of its
dismal performance in the Lok Sabha (Lower House of
Parliament) elections.

Advani met chief ministers of BJP-ruled states and senior
party colleagues to deliberate on a strategy to keep the party
relevant in the future as also his continuance as the Leader
of the Opposition.

Besides party chief Rajnath Singh, among the chief
ministers attending the meeting were Bhuvan Chandra Khanduri
of Uttarakhand, Prem Kumar Dhumal of Himachal Pradesh, Raman
Singh of Chhattisgarh, Shivraj Singh Chouhan of Madhya
Pradesh, B S Yeddyurappa of Karnataka and Sushil Kumar Modi,
the Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar.

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi had not turned up
for the meeting but party leaders said he was expected to be
present.

Senior leaders Jaswant Singh, Murli Manohar Joshi and
Sushma Swaraj, whose names are doing the rounds as possible
successors of Advani in the Lok Sabha, were also present for
the meeting.

"I won't say Advani era has ended. He will continue to
play a role just like Atal Bihari Vajpayee is playing," Joshi
had said.

Joshi said he was not in the race to take over Advani's
role in Parliament.

"I have never been in the race. But if the party gives me
any work or responsibility, I will discharge it to the best of
my ability," he said.

Party General Secretary Arun Jaitley, Ananth Kumar, M
Venkaiah Naidu, Thawarchand Gehlot and Vijay Goel were among
those present at the meeting.

BJP, which was hoping to form the government at the
Centre along with its National Democratic Alliance (NDA)
allies, could muster 116 seats in the house of 543, while its
NDA allies bagged 43 seats.

At the meeting of the Board on Saturday, Advani had
expressed his desire not to continue as Leader of Opposition
in the new Lok Sabha after the BJP suffered a severe drubbing
in the elections.

BJP leaders had requested Advani to reconsider his
decision and asked party president Rajnath Singh to persuade
him to change his mind. PTI