Lal Krishna Advani Biography

 Lal Krishna Advani, born on November 8, 1927, is an Indian politician and a prominent member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He has played a significant role in shaping Indian politics and is considered one of the stalwarts of the party.

Advani was born in Karachi, which was then a part of British India and is now in present-day Pakistan. He completed his early education in Karachi and later moved to Mumbai (then Bombay) to pursue his higher studies. He graduated with a law degree from the Government Law College in Mumbai.

Advani's political career began in the 1950s when he joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a Hindu nationalist organization. He became actively involved in the RSS's activities and rose through the ranks, eventually becoming a key leader. In 1951, he was appointed as the secretary of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS), the political arm of the RSS. Advani played a crucial role in building the BJS into a prominent right-wing political party.

In 1977, the BJS merged with several other parties to form the Janata Party, which went on to form the first non-Congress government at the national level. Advani was elected as a member of the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament, and served as the Minister of Information and Broadcasting in the Janata Party government.

However, the Janata Party government soon fell apart due to internal conflicts, and in 1980, Advani and other leaders of the BJS broke away from the Janata Party to form the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Advani became one of the founding members of the BJP and played a crucial role in shaping its ideology and electoral strategies.

Under Advani's leadership, the BJP emerged as a major political force in India, with a focus on Hindutva, a concept that emphasizes the cultural and religious heritage of India's Hindu majority. Advani served as the president of the BJP from 1986 to 1991 and again from 1993 to 1998.

Advani is perhaps best known for his role in the Ram Janmabhoomi movement, which aimed to construct a temple dedicated to Lord Ram at the site of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya. The movement gained widespread attention and led to the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992. Advani's involvement in the movement made him a prominent figure in Indian politics, but also drew criticism from opponents who accused him of promoting communal tensions.

Advani served as the Deputy Prime Minister of India from 2002 to 2004 under the government led by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, another prominent BJP leader. He held various ministerial positions during his political career, including Home Minister, Minister of Information and Broadcasting, and Minister of Urban Development.

In recent years, Advani has taken a backseat from active politics, but he remains respected as a senior statesman within the BJP. His contribution to the party's growth and his role in shaping the right-wing political landscape in India have solidified his place in Indian political history.