Shekhawat: Ready for contest?

New Delhi, Jan. 6: Former Vice-President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat today rattled the BJP by declaring he wanted to contest the Lok Sabha polls and that the issue of the Prime Minister candidate was still open.

With these remarks, Shekhawat appears to have thrown a challenge to L.K. Advani, already anointed shadow Prime Minister.

The three-time Rajasthan chief minister’s attempt to reopen the leadership debate in the BJP comes days after Advani quelled speculation about his differences with party chief Rajnath Singh.

Shekhawat, who acquired a bigger profile by contesting for President in 2007, told reporters in Jaipur that it was for the people to decide who would be Prime Minister.

Most BJP leaders dismissed the 86-year-old’s comments as politically insignificant. They said Shekhawat did not have the clout to challenge Advani, who is in full control of the party and has had his candidature for Prime Minister endorsed by the RSS.

A section in the BJP, however, is wary of Shekhawat positioning himself as an alternative to Advani in case the party fails to win enough seats to dictate terms to allies.

Party sources said Shekhawat had informed the leadership of his desire to contest the polls but was ignored.

Technically, Shekhawat had ceased to be a BJP member after assuming the constitutional office of Vice-President, and the leadership did not want to complicate hierarchy issues by inducting an ambitious veteran in the Lok Sabha ranks.

His latest salvo, however, will force the BJP to take a call on his poll candidature. The party may choose persuasion over outright rejection.

One leader jokingly summed up the mood: “Advaniji’s horoscope seems to have a Rajput problem; the pinpricks sometimes come from Chhote Thakur, sometimes from Bare Thakur.”

The reference was to Rajnath and Shekhawat, both Thakurs (Rajputs), neither of whom is on the best terms with Advani. But though Rajnath understands his limitations and has fallen in line, Shekhawat doesn’t have much time left to fulfil his ambitions.

Spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy tried to dodge the controversy. “Shekhawat is our senior leader and his blessings are always with us.”

Some leaders said Shekhawat had lit the controversy mainly because he was angry at Advani’s continuing support for Vasundhara Raje despite the defeat in Rajasthan.

Shekhawat and Jaswant Singh, another Rajput, are opposed to the former chief minister and had suggested a new leader be appointed in the Assembly. Shekhawat had vented his anger against Vasundhara by talking about the influence of money in the party.

Vasundhara had earlier taken a dig at older leaders by referring to them as relics.