BJP incorrect to ignore a leader of Advani`s stature: Ram Gopal Yadav

New Delhi: Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Ram Gopal Yadav on Thursday said that he was pained to see the manner in which BJP stalwart Lal Krishna Advani was not treated well by his party.

"I did not wish to make any comments on the internal rift within the BJP. However, since this is a case involving BJP patriarch Lal Krishna Advani, it makes me feel sad that a person who had transformed the party from a mere two MPs (Members of Parliament) to even ruling the seat of power in Delhi, has been sidelined this way, and not given a ticket from where he is willing to contest for the Lok Sabha, it makes people to ponder twice as to what care will a party like the BJP show towards them, when the same party (BJP), shows scant respect to its tallest leaders like Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi," Yadav said. On Wednesday BJP had decided to field LK Advani from Gujarat`s Gandhinagar constituency, overruling the stalwart`s desire to contest the elections from Bhopal. Advani, 87, wants to shift his political home from Gujarat, which has been governed by Modi for more than ten years, to Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh, where Shivraj Singh Chouhan is chief minister. Advani has been the sitting MP from Gandhinagar for the last 16 years. Advani has represented Gandhinagar in the 10th Lok Sabha (1991-96), 12th Lok Sabha (1998-99), 13th Lok Sabha (1999-2004), 14th Lok Sabha (2004-09) and the current 15th Lok Sabha (2009-14).