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Tara Shankar Sahay in Amritsar
There was some consternation among Bharatiya Janata Party activists attending the rally in Amritsar on Friday, November 2, when Union Home Minister Lal Kishenchand Advani failed to address them.
While party president K Jana Krishnamurthy addressed the rally, followed by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Advani did not, though he was present on the dais and was listed as the last speaker.
Advani's failure to address the rally became all the more conspicuous because of the lavish approbation Vajpayee lapped up from the large gathering, which clapped and cheered on his assertion that Pakistan's devious game plan on Jammu & Kashmir would never be allowed to succeed.
There was, however, minimal response to loud chants of "Jai Shri Ram" by BJP workers with a section of the gathering shouting "Bole so nihal, Sat Sri Akal" (a Sikh salutation to god).
When someone from the gathering contended that "Advaniji kal bolenge [Advani will speak tomorrow], one Advani supporter shouted back, "Us-se kya fayeda? Woh desh ke grih mantri hain aur Bhajpa ke sitare [What use will that be? He is the country's home minister and the BJP's star].
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