Finally, no surprises: Modi is NDA's PM candidate

Advani continues to sulk, the rest of the contenders on board

GN Bureau | September 13, 2013



Narendra Modi is the prime ministerial candidate of the BJP-led NDA, the party parliamentary board decided on Friday, ending weeks of speculations.

This signals a generational change-over for the BJP, as it ignored vehement opposition from its tallest leader LK Advani. The decision also sets up a virtual presidential kind of fight for the general elections scheduled next year – though the Congress is yet to formally name Rahul Gandhi as its candidate.

Read more: Set to be cornered in BJP, Advani sticks to his guns

BJP president Rajnath Singh made the announcement at a press meet at the party headquarters. Modi thanked the party for the decision and said he would lead the fight against UPA’s corruption.

The announcement came in the presence of the leaders of opposition, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley, former party presidents Nitin Gadkari and M Venkaiah Naidu, among others. Advani decided to give the parliamentary board meeting a miss – just as he had skipped the party executive in Goa in June.

It was in Goa meet that the three-time Gujarat chief minister was named the chairman of the party’s election campaign committee, which meant naming him as PM candidate was a mere formality.

Rajnath Singh told the media that he had spoken to “all the NDA allies” and they were fully in support of the decision, even as he refrained from naming the allies. JD(U) parted ways with the BJP on this issue, leaving only Akali Dal and Shiv Sena in the fold.
 

Comments

 

Other News

When religion, politics and Bollywood come together

Tavleen Singh, noted journalist and political commentator, has turned to fiction, with her debut novel ‘The Actor’ (HaperCollins India). Set in the near future, it has a superstar, Amit Singh, turning to politics, when the political landscape is dominated by prime minister Guru Gaynendraj

Cabinet approves setting up of Integrated Transport & Logistics Authority

The union cabinet, chaired by prime minister Narendra Modi, on Tuesday approved the setting up of a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), called Integrated Transport & Logistics Authority (ITLA), to strengthen research, planning, appraisal, monitoring and impact assessment within the broad domains of Transp

Why foundational literacy and numeracy is key to school education

Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) are often described as the building blocks of education. Yet, their significance goes well beyond a child’s ability to read a sentence, write a response or solve a basic mathematical problem. These foundational skills shape how children understand the world,

When police data becomes the algorithm

For decades, policing has followed a familiar sequence: a crime occurs, the police respond, an investigation produces records and those records become part of the institutional memory of the criminal justice system. Artificial intelligence is beginning to alter that sequence. Instead of merely recording

Before India voted, the framers worried about the referee

“We are making a Constitution forever and not only for today.” Shibban Lal Saksena said this in the Constituent Assembly on June 15, 1949. He was warning that a ruling party might one day choose a loyalist to run India’s elections. Seventy-seven years later, the Supreme Court is wrestli

Delhi moves to real-time traffic management

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by prime minister Narendra Modi, has approved implementation of the ITMS Project by Delhi Police at an estimated cost of Rs.1,789.52 crore, inclusive of taxes. The project will cover 42 identified traffic corridors and will be implemented in three

Upcoming Conferences



-->

Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter