Advantage, Naidu

Former BJP president M Venkaiah Naidu and General Secretary Rajnath Singh seem to have emerged the front runners for the party presidentship. Naidu, however, indicated that he was not in the race. "I have told friends in the party not to consider me," he said in Delhi.

While Naidu did not specify any reason, the recent income-tax raids on his family members and the fact that this interim appointment will last only a year are cited as reasons for his unwillingness.

Senior party sources pointed out that if BJP President LK Advani had his way and former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee supports him, Naidu would once again be elected as the party president. However, if there is opposition to the move, then Rajnath Singh, former UP chief minister of the influential Thakur community, could make it to the top party post.

The situation, however, is still fluid and there is no consensus among the BJP brass on Advani successor.

Only thing that is certain: Advani will step down after the party's silver jubilee convention in Mumbai on December 26-30. A BJP leader told Business Standard that it could be anytime between December 30 and January 1.

On the lack of consensus on the successor, he said too many people had veto power in the selection process but no one had any casting vote. The RSS leadership is a prime example of this, he quipped.

Sushma Swaraj, sources indicated, was lagging behind in the race. Former HRD Minister Murli Manohar Joshi""a hard-liner""is also trying to push his name through the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and some other quarters of the Sangh but there are hardly any takers for his name in the party.