The time was right, the party was groping in the dark for a successor who would be acceptable to both sides. Gupta knew that none of the three -- Kalraj Mishra, Lalji Tandon or Rajnath Singh -- would get Kalyan's job since that would have led to a full-scale rebellion within the party.

Another name being tossed around was that of Speaker Kesri Nath Tripathi. But there was a catch if Tripathi was made Chief Minister, there would have to be a Speaker's election, something which the BJP wanted to avoid. For, cross-voting by even a few MLAs could have led to another major embarrassment for the party.

Gupta was aware of all this and so he began meeting the right people, cashing in on his right connections. And there were quite a few to cash in.

First, he had afriendly chat with his old-time friend and fellow RSS pracharak, J P Mathur. It was Mathur who first hinted to Gupta that he had a better chance than Tripathi. Gupta then went to meet Human Resources Development Minister Murli Manohar Joshi to ``revive'' old ties.

Years ago, the two were together at the Allahabad University campus. Joshi was two years junior to Gupta. RSS chief Rajju Bhaiya was teaching Physics then and Joshi and Gupta soon became full-time RSS workers.

Gupta was also warmly welcomed by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee in Delhi. Again, not without reason. When Gupta settled down in Lucknow, Vajpayee was editing the Jana Sangh's mouthpiece Swadesh. Both worked as a team there. Besides meeting top RSS leaders in New Delhi, Gupta also called on BJP president Kushabhau Thakre who advised him to meet Union Home Minister L K Advani. All these leaders were looking for a way out in Lucknow. And Gupta made it evident that he was more than willing.