DNA Edit: Honourable Exit - For the 91-year-old LK Advani, it’s time to retire

It’s perhaps the end of a long political journey for BJP stalwart LK Advani as his Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat in Gujarat goes to BJP President Amit Shah. The 91-year-old is still physically and mentally active, but his role in parliamentary politics had shrunk considerably in recent years.

The emergence of Narendra Modi as the PM candidate in the run-up to the 2014 elections signalled a paradigm shift within the BJP. Modi’s stupendous victory paved the way for some sweeping changes, primarily related to leadership roles, in the party.

With the Modi-Amit Shah duo at the helm, it was time to gently push the old guard from the centre stage to respectable positions of “margadarshak” on the fringes. Unlike some of his contemporaries like Murli Manohar Joshi, Advani was quite visible in party meetings. He has had his long spell under the sun, and it only makes sense now to move into the shade.

Politics doesn’t have a retirement age, which also makes it extremely difficult for the second group of leaders to don the leadership mantle. While Advani is yet to issue an official statement, it’s fair to assume that he too must have realised that at this stage of his life it’s better to stay away from the rough and tumble of electoral politics.

There is also the larger question of the party’s interests. Modi understands that 2019 won’t be a cakewalk for the BJP and that he will need Shah by his side once he gets a second term in office. It is also believed that the two men have the penchant for thinking far ahead and strategising accordingly.

It’s a cliché with the ring of truth that the end of Advani’s parliamentary innings also signals the end of an era. He is one of the last surviving links and an active catalyst in the evolution of the party from its inception in 1951 to the current stage.

The BJP’s popularity had soared in the 1990s when he undertook the rath yatra to garner nationwide support for the construction of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. For years, Advani enjoyed tremendous support and clout within the BJP, his stature surpassed only by AB Vajpayee’s. He was elected to the Rajya Sabha for four terms and to the Lok Sabha on seven occasions. He was the country’s deputy prime minister and held key portfolios such as Home Ministry.

But, his dream of becoming the Prime Minister remained unfulfilled. Like any leader of his standing, Advani’s long innings in politics was punctuated with controversies. His brushes with the law over Babri Masjid demolition continues to haunt him. Advani, once upon a time a radical firebrand, was a polarising force in the Indian political landscape. What one sees now is a much mellowed man, virtually resigned to his fate. Modi infused fresh blood, energy and vigour in the BJP that Advani had failed to do. His honourable exit will at least ensure that his legacy doesn’t fade into oblivion.