Advani accepted that BJP, while in power at the Centre for six years, had somehow neglected to pay proper attention to their core constituency (Uttar Pradesh).
"In a sense, we took our core constituency for granted, a constituency that has always stood by us in the low tide and high tide of politics. This had a definite effect on the outcome of the elections", he said.
"We must draw the right lessons from this experience. If we do so, I have no doubt that BJP will return to the ascendant path whenever the Lok Sabha elections are held next", he said.
BJP Chief Ministers (Left to Right) Vasundhara Raje Scindia (Rajasthan), Narendra Modi (Gujarat) and Babulal Gaur (Madhya Pradesh) at the meet.
Photograph: Ranjan Basu/ Saab Press