Gyanvapi mosque: The situation in Varanasi portends a replay of 1992

This is a reminder of the lesson that the most effective tool for mass mobilisation in India is to march against the minorities

When L K Advani took charge of the Bharatiya Janata Party in 1986, he had never been a participant in electoral politics. His entry into politics came after time spent as a journalist in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh magazine, where he wrote film reviews.

As a politician, Mr Advani had always been a nominated member, whether in the Delhi Council or in the Rajya Sabha. He had no experience of political mass mobilisation and, going by his autobiography (My Country, My Life, published in 2008) does not appear to know how it worked.

The Ayodhya issue had actually been launched