PM Modi wants Advani to contest elections in 2019: Report

Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants veteran BJP leader LK Advani to contest the Lok Sabha polls in 2019, according to a report by News18.

If Advani decides to follow through on the suggestion, it would be a marked departure from BJP's age rule.

Multiple reports of BJP wanting to field some of its old guard in the upcoming polls have been making the rounds of late.

A Bengali publication reported that the party is thinking of fielding veteran Murli Manohar Joshi. Another report speculated about Yashwant Sinha possibly returning to the fold.

LK Advani had won the last Lok Sabha election from Gandhinagar, Gujarat. However, both he and Murli Manohar Joshi missed out on a place in Modi's cabinet of ministers.

Modi reportedly met Advani at his residence at Prithviraj Road, New Delhi. BJP leader, Amit Shah has also met the 90-year old Advani with a formal proposal.

While an official comment is awaited, BJP has recently been in a spot of bother with some allies leaving the NDA, and some others pushing for a larger say in running the government.