Advani may have been tougher opponent than Modi: Naik

The Congress would have found a "sober" L.K. Advani a much tougher poll rival than a "despotic" Narendra Modi, Congress Rajya Sabha member from Goa Shantaram Naik said here Monday.

Addressing a press conference at the Congress headquarters in Panaji, Naik said: "A sober Advani would have been a lot more tougher as an opponent than a fascist Modi."

Naik's comments come at a time when Advani, who objected to the Gujarat chief minister's appointment as the party's prime ministerial candidate last week, Monday praised Modi openly for his governance skills.

"By making Modi the prime ministerial candidate, the BJP has given the Congress an easy win. If they had named Advani, we would have had to give it some thought," Naik said.

Naik also said that the open involvement of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in the internal affairs of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) proved that the saffron party was controlled by the Sangh parivar.

"It is so much in the open. The BJP is openly paralysed by the RSS. All their functioning and decisions are a result of RSS thinking," Naik said, calling the RSS a fascist organisation.

Naik also said that the presence of former army chief General V.K. Singh on the dais with Modi at the ex-servicemen's rally at Rewari in Haryana suggested that Gen. Singh, who once backed Anna Hazare, has ditched the Gandhian crusader.

"Singh's presence next to Modi means he has deserted Anna Hazare, perhaps because Anna Hazare was not interested in politics, but the former army general is," Naik said.