NEW DELHI: There can be no reconsideration of Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi ’s projection as leader although the views of party seniors should not be ignored is the message RSS conveyed to BJP top brass recently.

Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat is understood to have clearly stated Sangh’s backing to Modi during his interactions with BJP leaders, including party veteran L K Advani who has opposed the CM’s projection as leader.

It was made fairly plain that Modi’s elevation as head of BJP’s campaign committee was due to a strong consensus in the party and the wider Sangh parivar and that this should be accepted by all shades of opinion.

“RSS feels it is time to move on and leave debates on who is suitable to be leader or not behind. This has been conveyed to all,” said a senior party source.

Advani’s meeting with Bhagwat in Nagpur recently followed an interaction with the RSS chief in Delhi. The consultations were aimed at getting BJP to focus on preparing for assembly elections due later this year and the 2014 Lok Sabha poll.

The RSS did, however, indicate that it did not favor the veteran leader being sidelined and suggested that the BJP stick to a consultative process in its decision-making that took all on board.

The need to work in a collaborative fashion was put across to BJP president Rajnath Singh when he met Bhagwat shortly after Advani did. Singh had an important role in Modi’s elevation.

But the “work-as-a-team” mantra is an expected piece of advice to the BJP leadership that it should be mindful in not conveying the impression senior leaders are being sidelined or ignored.

The more pertinent signal to emanate from the RSS headquarters in Nagpur is that Modi’s elevation is a done deal not open to any re-negotiations.

While the BJP is yet to declare Modi as its prime ministerial nominee, this is a logical conclusion to the decision taken at the party’s national executive at Goa where he was made campaign head.

The RSS, said sources, does not need to dwell on the process of Modi being named PM candidate but the arguments offered during discussions can make this quite evident.

The unusual clarification on Friday that RSS joint general secretary Suresh Soni will remain the link man with BJP is further evidence of the Sangh’s thinking on Modi.

The Advani camp is understood to have been particularly displeased with Soni for helping generate a consensus over Modi in BJP and RSS. The decision to scotch reports about Soni’s role being diluted was a deliberate action.

“"No truth in the story about Shri Suresh Soniji being sidelined. He continues to be the Sangh's contact person for BJP. No change," RSS functionary Ram Madhav tweeted.

