The Tamil Nadu unit of the BJP maintained a stoic silence on Monday, following the resignation of its senior-most statesman from key party posts. Even as they waited for instructions from their high command in Delhi on the issue, some party functionaries candidly said this would be resolved in a matter of days.
State leaders of the BJP maintained a studious silence, or made themselves absent for comment. Some of them repeatedly evaded reaction on the matter, saying they were following the news on the television. Others were more forthright, saying they would not react till they received suitable instructions from the party high command.
Some functionaries however seemed least bothered about the development that hogged headlines all day, and expressed cynicism over the act and its timing. “Advaniji is going nowhere. They will go fall at his feet and convince him to take back his resignation,” declared a functionary.
Others said there was no need to worry. “Apparently, this is only a stunt or a tantrum. If he was really that disgruntled or serious about stepping back from the affairs of the party he would have resigned from the party’s primary membership. He has not done that. So, it is only a matter of time before a certain sense of normalcy is returned,” said an office bearer.
But certain others were more considerate towards the leader they have looked up to all these years. “We understand that projecting Modi will gain us some votes, especially from the middle class. But, we need to understand that Advaniji is concerned about the allies. We should not be sidestepping someone of his experience,” said a prominent face of the State unit.
Opinion may be plenty within the party but within RSS, the BJP’s parent organisation, Advani’s resignation seemed to have created no ripples on the surface. “These are the events in the functioning of a political organisation. We are nobody to comment on their functioning. The RSS is not a political organisation, but a cultural one,” said a State-level worker.