BJP will win highest number of seats: Advani

Bangalore: The Bharatiya Janata Party was poised to win the highest number of seats in parliament, senior BJP leader L.K. Advani said here Tuesday.

"So far as my assessment is concerned, it seems to me that the largest single party in the new Lok Sabha would be the BJP. It also seems to me that the BJP along with its allies (in National Democratic Alliance) would be the largest alliance in parliament," Advani told reporters here during his two-day visit to Karnataka for poll campaign.

Asked which party or alliance should be invited to form the next government, the NDA prime ministerial candidate said: "The conventions are there in this regard. A party that would win the highest number of seats would get the opportunity to form the new government."

Though Advani admitted he could not predict the exact number of seats the party or the NDA would win, he expressed confidence that they would be able to get the mandate of the people to form a government.

"My assessment is based on feedback I got after visiting about 80 parliamentary constituencies during this period for electioneering. I have also visited more constituencies in the last six months to participate in the party's 'vijay sankalp rath yatra', where I was able to assess the change in the mood," Advani recalled.

The 10 allies of the BJP in the NDA are Shiromani Akali Dal, Shiv Sena, Janata Dal-United (JD-U), Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), Rashtriya Lok Dal, Asom Gana Parishad (AGP), Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM), Nagaland Peoples Front (NPF), Uttarkhand Kranti Dal and Kantapur Progressive Party in West Bengal.

Terming the 15th Lok Sabha elections more crucial for the country than political parties or individuals, Advani said had the BJP won the 2004 elections, the country would have achieved a lot.

"But we failed, principally because we were overconfident at that time and the climate also bred that overconfidence even among our opponents. This time, I have cautioned my party leaders and cadres against being overconfident but work hard with self-confidence," the former deputy prime minister said.

A sober Advani, however, declined to join issue with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's remarks that he (Advani) had been indulging in mudslinging against him during the last five years.

Asked if he was in favour of a law that would allow only members of the Lok Sabha to become prime minister, Advani said it was up to the political parties to build a consensus on it, as an amendment to the law would require a two-thirds majority to pass it in parliament.

Manmohan Singh is a Rajya Sabha member.