The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh is stepping up pressure on Bharatiya Janata Party president Lal Kishenchand Advani [Images].

Shortly after the organisation's spokesman Ram Madhav released a statement taking a swipe at Advani, general secretary Mohan Bhagwat commented that the RSS needed leaders whose actions matched his words.

• Advani in Pakistan

The comments came at a function to unveil a life-size portrait of Madhav 'Guruji' Golwalkar, the second chief of the RSS, in Nagpur on Saturday to mark his birth centenary. The portrait has been put up in the auditorium of The Scientific Cooperative Housing Society.

"The country needs a leader who will be a stickler for truth and willing to take non-populist decisions in the larger interests of the country," Bhagwat said after unveiling Golwalkar's portrait.

• RSS attacks Advani's credentials

Although Bhagwat did not name anyone, his comments were clearly directed at Advani. The RSS perceives Advani as a leader who has strayed from the organisation's ideology with the statement describing Mohammed Ali Jinnah as a secular leader.

Among other things, Advani's infamous statement is also seen as an attempt to appease minorities.

Bhagwat's comments assume significance since these came shortly after the RSS launched an indirect attack on Advani. In a statement released on Saturday, RSS spokesman Ram Madhav said the organisation had taken serious note of the 'ideological erosion, misdemeanour and violation of discipline' by functionaries of like-minded organisations.

Observers believe that the RSS is now gradually building up pressure on Advani by levelling criticism without naming him, and then moving in at the opportune moment to deliver the final blow.

Central India News Service