Swamy releases Advani memoir

BJP patriarch L K Advani, it appears, can hardly avoid controversy these days. A memoir on Advani, written by former aide Vishwambhar Srivastava, was released on Friday by BJP leader Dr Subramanian Swamy.

A day before the ribbon cutting function of "Advani Ke Saath 32 Saal", his current aide Deepak Chopra issued a statement saying that "this book does not have the consent of L K Advani and has been published against his wishes."

Advani, however, was photographed with the author and the book is filled with anecdotes of his life. Srivastava, who claimed that he has been with the former deputy prime minister for about three decades, said he had shown the first manuscript of the book to Advani and edited some text on the veteran BJP leader’s suggestion.

As if that was not enough to suggest that Chopra’s statement failed to silence murmuring about Advani distancing himself from the book, came Swami’s comment.

BJP Rajya Sabha MP Swami, speaking at the function made it obvious where he wanted his punches to land. "No one can object to this book. It presents a beautiful image of Advaniji. Advaniji himself did not say anything,” he said.