Advani to felicitate Uma

A patch-up programme between Uma Bharti and the senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership seems to have finally got off the ground. Not only is former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee going to address the final leg of Bharti's tiranga yatra, former Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani will be hosting a reception at his residence on Sunday evening for the "triumphant" Bharti.

Earlier, during he stopover in Delhi on Wednesday, she made met Advani and conveyed to him her grievances against the way she had been treated of late.

According to sources, Bharti, who was not supposed to stay in Delhi changed her plans citing a "dental appointment" and made it to the meeting.

"It seems Advani personally heard her out and assured her that things will get better," said a senior BJP leader.

The decision to hold a reception for Bharti was made after this meeting. In fact, senior leaders who were making noises about "temper tantrums" and "arbitrary behaviour" soon changed their tune.

Now many justify Bharti's anger. "After all, what will be your political stock if you cannot ensure one MLA ticket for a favourite supporter," said a senior BJP office-bearer.

The ticket being referred to of course is the Nohata Assembly seat in Madhya Pradesh which Bharti wanted for Prahlad Patel, instead the ticket went to Dasarath Singh Lodhi, another OBC. "This happened right after her resignation as MP chief minister. So she felt that she was losing her grip on her fiefdom," said a leader.

While Advani's reception is being seen as a way of mollifying Bharti, it is in no way a reflection of which way the battle for the top job in the BJP is going. For that, the battle is still ahead, with the next instalment in the saga to be played out after the results of the Maharashtra polls.