New York, June 14: Seeking apparently yet again to put a lid on the leadership controversy, Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani has expressed confidence that Atal Bihari Vajpayee will win a mandate in the next elections and continue to be Prime Minister "for years". "From 1999 there is only one Prime Minister in the country which vindicates the policies the Vajpayee government is following," he said recalling that between 1988 and 1998 there had been seven Prime Ministers.
Advani was addressing the Indian American community at the inauguration of Jayprakash Narayan centenary programme here and apparently had in mind the leadership issue that rocked BJP before he left on his current foreign tour. He asserted that the BJP-led government has brought political stability to the country and put the nation on the path to real progress with the aim of ensuring that it takes its place among developed nations by the year 2020. Stating this showed political stability, he expressed confidence that Vajpayee would lead the country even after next year's general elections. Bureau Report