Advani not invited to Sangh event on Emergency; BJP brazens out for Raje

Advani last week expressed fears that the Emergency could return

Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L K Advani was not invited to a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh-backed function and a party, organised to mark the 40th anniversary of the Emergency.

In Jaipur, Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje fumed at the "baseless" media coverage tarnishing her image, though there was little word on whether she had indeed signed a witness form for Lalit Modi. Raje is alleged to have backed Lalit Modi's application for immigration to the UK

Read more from our special coverage on "EMERGENCY"

• Govt wants to make India the finest democracy: Modi
• On its 40th anniversary, Twitter recalls Emergency in different strokes
• Modi says India was converted into a jail when Emergency was imposed
• Country turned into a jail during Emergency: PM
• Govt has imposed undeclared Emergency in country: Congress

Raje is said to be equally upset that no senior leader in Delhi came to her defence in the face of Congress' attack on her.

The BJP was more purposeful in defending Raje on Thursday. What has given the party solace is how several more of Lalit Modi's friends, including some businessmen, media personalities and politicians, had stood witness for him, documents, which are likely to become public in the days to come. Party leaders refuted Congress claims that Raje held any constitutional position, like the leader of opposition in the Rajasthan Assembly, when she purportedly signed on the witness form for Lalit Modi in August 2011. Any action on Raje will also need to factor in how she, and not Narendra Modi, had led the BJP to a spectacular victory in the 2013 Assembly elections in Rajasthan and then won all 25 seats from Rajasthan in the Lok Sabha.

By late afternoon, a statement from Raje's press advisor accused news channels of "tarnishing her image" and causing "political damage" to the chief minister. It asked electronic media to not run false news based on rumours. The statement referred to several reports on news channels as untrue. It referred to TV news headlines like '110 MLAs come in support of Raje'; 'resignation sought from Vasundhara, she says I will not tender resignation'; 'If I am removed, the party would come in great problem: Vasundhara' and 'BJP can divide if Vasundhara goes'. The statement claimed as "untrue" reports that said how 'MLAs and ministers are gathering at CM residence' or 'CM is going to Delhi'. But the statement was silent on whether at all Raje had signed the witness form or not.

Senior leaders were more purposeful in denying any rift in the party. Senior ministers M Venkaiah Naidu said there was no crisis within the BJP. Party national secretary Shrikant Sharma said the Congress was levelling "baseless allegations" and acting out of "frustration". Party spokesperson Sambit Patra said the authenticity of the documents was yet to be proven. "Even if we presume the documents to be true, we know that they had family relations," he said.

But the controversy continued to dog the BJP, with the party as well as the Sangh not inviting Advani to a function to mark 40th anniversary of the Emergency, which party President Amit Shah addressed. Advani wasn't invited to the 35th Foundation of the party last year. Neither did he deliver his customary address at the BJP's national executive meeting at Bengaluru. Advani, who last week expressed fears that the Emergency could return, was last year made the member of the BJP's 'margdarshak mandal' along with Murli Manohar Joshi and others. The group hasn't met even once.

In his address, Shah said Emergency cannot be ruled out as long as parties run by dynasty have a chance to rule the country. "If you vote for an individual, Emergency will come yet again. If you vote for an ideology and a party, then Emergency will never come," he said at the event organised by Syama Prasad Mookerjee Research Foundation.

He said a key test is whether internal democracy is alive within a party or not. Shah said Emergency does not come through ordinances or force by circumstances but come through a dictatorial mindset. He identified the BJP as one of two-three parties among 1,650 in India, where internal democracy was still alive.