PICTURE SPEAK

Ugra accepts the SJFI award from Sunil Gavaskar

For over a year now, the BJP has been confusion personified. It has been divided between whether to beat a retreat back to Hindutva or whether to refashion the party into a modern political entity. Last October, after losing the Maharashtra assembly polls, the BJP reached out to the architect of hardline Hindutva and the father of the modern day rath yatra, Lal Krishna Advani. Advani, it was hoped, would quell dissent and give the party new direction. But their hopes were belied as Advani flapped in the wind. As if that was not bad enough, he has now created one of the BJP's biggest crises. It is, however, rich in irony. The man once compared to Sardar Patel has called Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the architect of Pakistan, secular.

In a career as long as 77-year-old Advani's, a politician can sometimes find himself opposing his party's line. Few though would have expected to find him on Jinnah's side. Or have imagined he would defy the Sangh Parivar on the issue by resigning from the party presidentship. With his provocative statements, Advani has attempted to redefine the very ideology of the BJP-at Jinnah's mausoleum in Karachi, of all places. Since Atal Bihari Vajpayee's semi-retirement, a space has been created in the BJP for the "moderate" rightwinger. Advani may well believe it is time to dismantle the superstructure of Hindutva so he can occupy it.

But his situation only reflects the churning in the party. The BJP needs to fix its ideological bearings and find new leaders. For a long time now, the BJP has been dependant on two old men as its younger leaders have no constituency outside the capital. Our cover story studies the impact of the Advani episode on the BJP. Special Correspondent Priya Sahgal, who reported the story with bureau inputs, says, "For once no BJP leader wanted to go on record. The soundbite spinmasters had suddenly lost their voice."

Away from politics, I am proud to inform you that India Today has won another award. Senior Editor Sharda Ugra was named Sportswriter of the Year at the Sports Journalists Federation of India Awards held in Mumbai which recognised excellence in sports writing and photography. And proving yet again that sports journalists have the most fun, the awards function was held at a disco.

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