Advani telephones Vajpayee but they still do not play ball

The crisis in the BJP deepened on Friday after a slew of meetings failed to break the stalemate on Madan Lal Khurana's expulsion.

This became evident when Jaswant Singh's evening meeting with Vajpayee failed to clarify the his statement on Khurana. Advani then convened a meeting of party general secretaries on Monday. Sources said this meeting could see some important decisions.

Advani phoned Vajpayee in the afternoon. The latter reportedly said that his statement was not meant to challenge Advani's authority.

Earlier, as Singh and party vice-president Venkaiah Naidu were trying to resolve the crisis, Khurana met Vajpayee and told the media, "Atalji is like Krishna to me and I am Arjun. If he wants he could call me and Advani for a meeting and sort out differences."

Singh and Naidu met Vajpayee, but no clarification was issued and it was evident the impasse had worsened. Party sources said Advani is unwilling to yield as it will erode his authority. Vajpayee's seriousness too will be questioned if he steps back without some concession.