L. K. Advani facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Bharat Ratna L. K. Advani
Advani in 2022
7th Deputy Prime Minister of India
In office 29 June 2002 – 22 May 2004
Prime Minister	Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Preceded by	Devi Lal
Succeeded by	Vacant
21st Union Minister of Home Affairs
In office 19 March 1998 – 22 May 2004
Prime Minister	Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Preceded by	Indrajit Gupta
Succeeded by	Shivraj Patil
16th Union Minister of Coal and Mines
In office 1 July 2002 – 26 August 2002
Prime Minister	Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Preceded by	Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Succeeded by	Uma Bharati
17th Union Minister of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions
In office 29 January 2003 – 21 May 2004
Prime Minister	Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Preceded by	Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Succeeded by	Manmohan Singh
6th Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha
In office May 2004 – December 2009
Prime Minister	Manmohan Singh
Preceded by	Sonia Gandhi
Succeeded by	Sushma Swaraj
In office 24 December 1990 – 26 July 1993
Prime Minister	Vishwanath Pratap Singh P. V. Narasimha Rao
Preceded by	Rajiv Gandhi
Succeeded by	Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha
In office 28 February 1998 – 23 May 2019
Preceded by	Vijay Patel
Succeeded by	Amit Shah
Constituency	Gandhinagar, Gujarat
In office 26 November 1989 – 7 May 1996
Preceded by	Krishna Chandra Pant
Succeeded by	Rajesh Khanna
Constituency	New Delhi, Delhi
2nd President of the Bharatiya Janata Party
In office 2004–2005
Preceded by	Venkaiah Naidu
Succeeded by	Rajnath Singh
In office 1993–1998
Preceded by	Murli Manohar Joshi
Succeeded by	Kushabhau Thakre
In office 1986–1991
Preceded by	Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Succeeded by	Murli Manohar Joshi
5th Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha
In office 21 January 1980 – 7 April 1980
Vice President	Mohammad Hidayatullah
Preceded by	Kamalapati Tripathi
Succeeded by	P. Shiv Shankar
11th Union Minister of Information & Broadcasting
In office 24 March 1977 – 28 July 1979
Prime Minister	Morarji Desai
Preceded by	Vidya Charan Shukla
Succeeded by	Purushottam Kaushik
Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha
In office 3 April 1988 – 30 November 1989
Preceded by	Hans Raj Bhardwaj
Succeeded by	Jinendra Kumar Jain
Constituency	Madhya Pradesh
In office 3 April 1982 – 2 April 1988
Preceded by	Sawai Singh Sisodiya
Succeeded by	Radhakishan Malviya
Constituency	Madhya Pradesh
In office 3 April 1976 – 2 April 1982
Preceded by	Devdatt Kumar Kikabhai Patel
Succeeded by	Kumud Ben Joshi
Constituency	Gujarat
Personal details
Born	Lal Krishna Advani (1927-11-08) 8 November 1927 (age 97) Karachi, Bombay Presidency, British India (present–day Sindh, Pakistan)
Political party	Bharatiya Janata Party (1980–present)
Other political affiliations	Janata Party (1977–1980) Bharatiya Jana Sangh (1951–1977)
Spouse	Kamla Advani ​ ​ (m. 1965; died 2016)​
Children	Pratibha Advani (daughter) Jayant Advani (son)
Awards	Bharat Ratna Padma Vibhushan
Signature

Lal Krishna Advani (born 8 November 1927) is a famous Indian politician. He served as the Deputy Prime Minister of India from 2002 to 2004. He is one of the people who helped start the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He is also a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a volunteer group.

Advani was the Home Minister for a long time, from 1998 to 2004. He also served as the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha. He was also the President of the BJP for the longest time. In 2009, he was the BJP's candidate for Prime Minister.

He was born in Karachi and moved to India during the Partition of India. He then settled in Bombay and finished his college studies there. Advani joined the RSS when he was 14 years old in 1941. He worked as a full-time volunteer in Rajasthan.

In 1951, Advani became a member of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh party. He held many important roles in this party. In 1967, he became the chairman of the first Delhi Metropolitan Council. In 1970, Advani became a member of the Rajya Sabha for the first time. He served four terms there until 1989.

He became the president of Jana Sangh in 1973. This party later joined with others to form the Janata Party in 1977. After the Janata Party won the elections, Advani became the Minister for Information and Broadcasting.

In 1980, he helped create the BJP with Atal Bihari Vajpayee. He was the party president three times. He was elected to the Lok Sabha for the first time in 1989. He served seven terms there. Advani was a key figure in the rise of the BJP as a major political party.

In 2015, he received the Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian award. In 2024, he was given the Bharat Ratna, which is India's highest civilian honor.

Early Life and Family

Lal Krishna Advani was born on 8 November 1927. His birthplace was Karachi, in what was then British India. He comes from a Sindhi Hindu family. His parents were Kishanchand D. Advani and Gyani Devi.

Advani went to school at St. Patrick's High School, Karachi. He also studied at D.G. National College in Hyderabad, Sindh. When India was divided in 1947, his family moved to Bombay. There, he studied Law at the Government Law College.

Advani married Kamla Advani in February 1965. They had a son named Jayant and a daughter named Pratibha. His daughter Pratibha works as a television producer. She also helps her father with his political work. His wife, Kamla Advani, passed away in 2016. Advani lives in Delhi.

Political Journey

Starting in Politics (1941-1970)

Advani joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in 1941. He was only 14 years old then. He became a pracharak, which means a full-time worker. In 1947, he became the secretary of the RSS unit in Karachi. After India's partition, Advani worked as a pracharak in Rajasthan. He continued this work until 1952.

In 1951, Advani became a member of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS). This political party was started by Syama Prasad Mookerjee. Advani worked as a secretary for the party in Rajasthan. In 1957, he moved to Delhi. There, he became the general secretary and later the president of the Delhi unit of Jana Sangh.

From 1966 to 1967, he led the BJS in the Delhi Metropolitan Council (DMC). After the 1967 elections, he was chosen as the chairman of the council. He served in this role until 1970. He also helped with the Organiser newspaper, which was the weekly newsletter of the RSS. In 1966, he joined the RSS national executive.

Entering Parliament and Becoming a Minister (1970-1980)

In 1970, Advani became a member of the Rajya Sabha from Delhi. This was his first time in Parliament. In 1973, he was elected as the president of the BJS party.

In 1976, Advani was re-elected to the Rajya Sabha from Gujarat. This was his second term. During a period called "The Emergency," many opposition parties joined together. They formed the Janata Party. In the 1977 election, the Janata Party won by a lot. Morarji Desai became the Prime Minister. Advani became the Minister of Information and Broadcasting. He was also the leader of the house in Rajya Sabha.

The government did not complete its full five-year term. New elections were held in 1980. The Janata Party lost to the Indian National Congress. After this, Advani became the leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha.

Forming the BJP and Its Rise (1981-1997)

On 6 April 1980, Advani and other former Jana Sangh members left the Janata Party. They formed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the first president of the new party. In 1982, Advani was elected to the Rajya Sabha for the third time. He represented the BJP from Madhya Pradesh.

In the 1984 election, the BJP won only two seats. This led to a change in the party's direction. Advani became the party president. The BJP started to focus more on the Hindutva ideology.

Under Advani's leadership, the BJP became very involved in the Ayodhya dispute. This was about building a temple at the Ram Janmabhoomi site in Ayodhya. The BJP supported this campaign. It became a big part of their election plan for the 1989 elections. This helped the party win 86 seats. Advani was elected to the Lok Sabha for the first time. He became the leader of opposition in Lok Sabha.

In 1990, Advani started the Ram Rath Yatra. This was a procession with a chariot to gather support for the Ram Janmabhoomi movement. The procession started in Somnath and was heading to Ayodhya. It was stopped in Bihar, and Advani was arrested.

In the 1991 election, the BJP became the second largest party. Advani won his seat from Gandhinagar for the second time. He again became the leader of opposition. In 1992, the Babri Masjid was taken down. Advani was accused of being involved. However, he was later found not guilty by a special court in 2020. The court said the demolition was not planned. It also stated that Advani was trying to stop the crowd, not encourage them.

In the 1996 election, the BJP became the largest party. They were asked to form the government. Advani did not run in these elections. This was because of accusations in the Hawala scandal. He was later cleared of these charges by the Supreme Court. Vajpayee became Prime Minister in May 1996, but the government lasted only thirteen days.

Home Minister and Deputy Prime Minister (1998-2004)

In the 1998 election, the BJP and its allies formed the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). They came to power with Vajpayee as Prime Minister. Advani was elected to the Lok Sabha for the third time. He became the Home Minister. This government also lasted only thirteen months.

New elections were called in 1999. The BJP-led NDA won again. Advani won his seat from Gandhinagar for the fourth time. He continued as Home Minister. In 2002, he was also made the Deputy Prime Minister.

Leader of Opposition and Later Years (2004-2015)

Advani with then US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in 2005

In the 2004 election, the BJP lost. The United Progressive Alliance led by the Congress party came to power. Manmohan Singh became Prime Minister. Advani won his fifth term in the Lok Sabha. He became the leader of opposition. After the 2004 defeat, Vajpayee stepped back from politics. Advani then became the main leader of the BJP.

In 2005, Advani visited Karachi. He made a comment about Mohammad Ali Jinnah that caused some debate. This led to criticism from the RSS. Advani resigned as BJP president but took back his resignation a few days later. In December 2005, Advani stepped down as party president. Rajnath Singh took his place.

In December 2006, Advani said he wanted to be the Prime Minister candidate for the 2009 elections. Vajpayee supported his candidacy. On 10 December 2007, the BJP officially announced Advani as their Prime Ministerial candidate for the 2009 general elections.

Advani during an election campaign in 2009

Advani won his sixth term in Lok Sabha in the 2009 elections. However, the BJP lost to the Congress and its allies. Manmohan Singh remained Prime Minister. After this defeat, Advani handed over the leader of opposition role to Sushma Swaraj. In 2010, he became the working chairman of the National Democratic Alliance.

Advani ran in the 2014 general election from Gandhinagar. He won for the fifth time in a row from that constituency. Later, he became part of the Marg Darshak Mandal (vision committee) of the BJP. This committee included Murli Manohar Joshi and Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Rath Yatras: Public Journeys

Advani in 2009

Advani often organized Rath yatras. These were processions or journeys to make the BJP more popular. They also aimed to unite people around the Hindutva idea. He led six such journeys across the country.

• Ram Rath Yatra: Advani started his first yatra from Somnath in Gujarat on 25 September 1990. It was planned to end in Ayodhya. This journey was connected to the Ayodhya dispute. The procession was stopped in Bihar, and Advani was arrested.
• Janadesh Yatra: In 1993, four processions started from different parts of the country. Advani led the one from Mysore in South India. These journeys aimed to get public support against two bills. They covered 14 states and two Union Territories.
• Swarna Jayanti Rath Yatra: This procession took place in 1997. It celebrated 50 years of Indian Independence. It also showed the BJP as a party focused on good governance.
• Bharat Uday Yatra: This journey happened before the 2004 election.
• Bharat Suraksha Yatra: In 2006, the BJP launched two yatras. Advani led one from Dwaraka to Delhi. The other was led by Rajnath Singh. These journeys focused on fighting terrorism, corruption, and rising prices.
• Jan Chetna Yatra: The last of these journeys started on 11 October 2011. It aimed to raise public awareness against corruption in the government. It also promoted the BJP's ideas of good governance.

Key Roles Held

Awards and Recognitions

Advani receiving the Bharat Ratna award in 2024

•  India:
  • Bharat Ratna (9 February 2024) - This is India's highest civilian honor.
  • Padma Vibhushan (2015) - This is India's second highest civilian honor.

See also

• Electoral history of L. K. Advani
• Ayodhya dispute
• Bharatiya Janata Party
• Atal Bihari Vajpayee