BJP President Rajnath Singh had a 30-minute meeting with Advani to persuade him on Modi's candidature but failed to get an assurance, sources said.
His predecessor Nitin Gadkari had met Advani yesterday as an emissary of the RSS for the same purpose but reportedly went back empty-handed. Gadkari left for Nagpur, where the RSS headquarters are located, to brief the Sangh founthead on the developments.
Meanwhile, General Secretary (Organisation) Ramlal- who is the RSS pointsman in BJP- has been given the task of finding a suitable date before September 19 when the Parliamentary Board members are in the capital so that a meeting can be held.
Other than Advani, Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj and Murli Manohar Joshi are also opposed to announcing Modi as the PM candidate before the forthcoming Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Delhi.
Also Read
He denied reports that the panel may meet on September 13 and said no formal decision on a date has been taken yet.
Those opposed to Modi, however, maintain that had there been a consensus on his name the Parliamentary Board would have been called at a short notice.
"Looking for consensus date is a facade. Parliamentary Board meetings have been called even at a few hours notice," a senior leader said.