Modi is the right choice, RSS tells BJP

The RSS, the saffron brigade's parent organisation, sent out another clear signal on Saturday that Narendra Modi would be the right choice for the BJP's candidate for Prime Minister. "We have told the party about the Sangh's feelings and janta ki maang. It's the party that has to take a decision now," said RSS spokesperson Manmohan Vaidya, referring to Modi.
He was speaking on the same day that Narendra Modi was giving yet another shot to his Red Fort dreams from a replica of the castle in Chhattisgarh. The statement came in a short interaction with Vaidya a day ahead of their crucial meeting in Delhi to discuss what Vaidya described as "routine issues". Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi addresses a public rally at Ambikapur in Chhattisgarh on Saturday. Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi addresses a public rally at Ambikapur in Chhattisgarh on Saturday. Deliberate delay But the meeting is expected to clear doubts about Modi's anointment, which has been delayed by incarcerated Gujarat police officer D.G. Vanzara's letter bomb and doubts raised by the Advani camp in the BJP which wants to delay the announcement of the BJP's candidate till after the Assembly elections in four states.
 The logic is that it may not help the party in states like Madhya Pradesh, where Shivraj Singh Chouhan may need to garner the votes of a sizeable Muslim population. It's for BJP to decide on Modi, says RSS Another reason for wanting a delay in the announcement is that the anti-Modi faction in the BJP would get a chance to prop up Chouhan as an alternative to Modi if he wins a thumping majority in Madhya Pradesh. Modi is still regarded by many as a powerful regional satrap with big national ambitions. Speculation is rife that the party may come up with Modi's name formally on his birthday on September 17, after which the Pitr paksh period, regarded by Hindus as inauspicious, begins.
 A day before the meeting of the BJP-RSS coordination committee in the Capital, Vaidya admitted having conveyed the Sangh's stand to the party. However, he also insisted that the issue of naming a political alternative is not likely to come up during the two-day meeting starting September 29. Modi is likely to be present at the meeting on both days. No discussion Contrary to the buzz in the media, he said there will be no discussion on the current political situation or Modi's candidature in the meeting. "The discussion on (naming) a political alternative has reached an advanced stage. It doesn't really have to be a part of this meeting," Vaidya said. RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat is scheduled to be present in the meeting only on Monday, which had earlier been touted as the final day for announcing Modi's candidature.
 The level of the bi-annual meeting has apparently been scaled up this time with 65 karyakartas likely to attend. According to Vaidya, there will be 25 officebearers from the Sangh, 12 members from the BJP and workers of 13 other sangathans from across the country. Modi says govt throwing acid on wounds of the poor "We will all deliberate on issues concerning the economy, society and security as well as share the experience. The next such meeting, in January, will be held in Hyderabad," Vaidya said before walking out of the press briefing without answering any further questions on Modi. With confusion continuing in the ranks, sources say the RSS wants to get the issue settled soon as it believes that a delay will cost the party dearly and will also send a confusing signal to the BJP's cadres and its voters. However, with a section of party leaders aligned to senior party leader L.K. Advani still holding on, the Sangh is finding it difficult to have its way even as the window of opportunity for Modi's official crowning is fast shrinking.
 NaMo takes on PM from 'Red Fort' As camps, for and against Narendra Modi's coronation as BJP Prime Ministerial candidate, huddled in New Delhi on Saturday to plan their next move, the Gujarat Chief Minister chose to skip any mention of the issue during his address from a Red Fort replica in Ambikapur, Chhattisgarh. Rather, he used the platform to launch a scathing attack on the Congress-led UPA at the Centre. He drew comparisons between the Congress-led government at the Centre and the BJP government in the state to target Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the economy. "We have a Singh (Raman) in Chhattisgarh and another one in Delhi. Both are doctors and both are completing ten years in power... Raman Singh has reinvigorated Chhattisgarh, while because of Manmohan Singh, our Rupee is in the hospital...," Modi said at the function organised to mark the completion of Raman's Vikas Yatra.
 Modi may be named PM candidate on his birthday on September 17 Also present on the dais, erected especially for Modi, were BJP president Rajnath Singh. Both the leaders targeted the UPA for inflation, deficient food law and economic crisis that the nation is facing. Modi didn't spare Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi too. Without taking his name, he said: "Even his grandmother (Indira Gandhi) who gave the slogan of 'Garibi Hatao' would be pained to learn that he said 'poverty is a state of mind'." Hitting out at the Congress for Telangana violence, he said: "When Atal Bihari Vajpayee created three states (Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand in 2000), sweets were distributed by all, but when Congress created Telangana, curfew was imposed.
" Turning the function into a political rally, the BJP leader appealed to the lakh-plus crowd at the venue to ensure a hat-trick for Raman in Chhattisgarh. In his unique style, Modi compared Chhattisgarh's 13 years as a separate state with a child's adolescence. "There is not much development in a child till the age of 13. There will be greater advancement in Chhattisgarh over the next five years as in the case of a child between 13 and 18 years. Please ensure you commit no mistake this time and return the BJP to power once again, he said. Raman said he saw emergence of a new Chhattisgarh during his six-phase yatra, which started in May. "The yatra has emerged as a valuable medium to seek feedback directly from the people and I have seen a new Chhattisgarh emerging," he said. Badal to attend Modi summit for farmers The upcoming Vibrant Gujarat Global Agricultural Summit 2013 will provide Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and his Punjab counterpart Parkash Singh Badal the opportunity to discuss the ticklish issue of eviction of Sikh farmers from Kutch region.
 The summit, which aims at bringing together "progressive farmers" from across the country, will begin from Monday in Gandhinagar. Badal is expected to take up the farmers' issue, as the eviction of peasants from Kutch region has created resentment among the Sikh community in Punjab. While the Shiromani Akali Dal has been one of the oldest and most trusted allies of the BJP-led NDA, the face-off between the Gujarat and Punjab governments has been becoming a sore point between the two parties. Despite Punjab's request to not pursue the eviction case, the Modi government went ahead to challenge the Gujarat High Court's decision in the Supreme Court. On his part, Modi had assured Badal that his government had never made any pressure on Sikh farmers to leave the state. The Gujarat government is committed to ensure that no injustice happens to the Sikh farmers, he added. Modi had blamed the previous Congress regimes for the impasse. Sikh farmers, who had settled in Kutch over 50 years ago, were barred from selling, buying or taking any loans or subsidy on their land. This was a fallout of the Gujarat government's order to 'freeze' their land under the provisions of the Bombay Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1958.