With the ascent of Modi to the top of the BJP hierarchy, its
shocking how much of a one-man show the party has become. Seasoned senior
leaders have been given the go-by, with the exhortation that the new generation
has taken over. Modi may well enjoy the glory for now, for it serves his
interests very well. But the shrinkage in the leadership pool of the principal
opposition party should be a matter of concern in a democracy. Just look at how
Modi’s elevation has done that:
First, Modi’s elevation has come in a most un-gainly
way, with four out of the top five BJP leaders being cut-up with the act. There
is “rusted iron-man” Advani of
course, who went public with his disenchantment. Then there is “one step forward, two backwards” Sushma
Swaraj, leader of the opposition (she said she wouldn’t be able to function in
that role if Modi was made PM nominee; what will she do now?), who did her
typical two steps back move towards the end. And “oppose always, because we are the opposition” Yashwant Sinha, who
is hardly visible or audible these days. And then there is the true blue…..no “truly saffron”, Murli Manohar Joshi, who
has quietly decided to give up his opposition, and possibly his Lok Sabha seat
in Varanasi to Modi. Now, the result of all this has been that all these
stalwarts are out of the picture. Expect them to keep a low profile, hardly be
the feisty fighters that they otherwise are. The brigade of the light-weights,
the Ravi Shankar Prasads, the Venkaiah Naidu’s, the Nitin Gadkari’s and the
Rajnath Singh’s (I call him a lightweight in spite of him being the party Pres)
has taken over the mantle from the stalwarts. For Modi is comfortable with the
lightweights! And, since Modi is also the party’s campaign chief, the entire exercise
is being run by him. Modi has taken full advantage of this, and appointed his
close flunkey of “Sohrabuddin and Vanzara”
fame, Amit Shah in UP. This is the “I, me, myself” trait that Modi has got best
known for!
Second, look at the party’s dependence on Modi. Even
the national campaign for 2014 was kick-started on Modi’s birthday! This is
bizarre, considering that the elections are still at least 8 months away, and
any date could have been chosen. But the party, full of servile leaders as it
is now, chose to fete Modi by this act, as if he were some dead and gone
freedom fighter! Modi of course, the humble man that he is, acquiesced!
Third, look at the political strategy of the BJP now
that Modi has become Lord Almighty. The main plank is Hindutva of course, set
by the RSS, but championed by Modi. His “I am a Hindu nationalist” posters, the
“burqa” and “puppy” remarks, are all developed around Hindutva with Modi in the
center. The secondary poll plank is development. The model? Gujarat! Who cares
about the success achieved by MP, Chhatisgarh and…..oops, there are no other
states ruled by the BJP! Equally, who cares if the data is so bizarrely wrong
that it has earned him the sobriquet #feku! And of course, who cares about
esoteric things like HDI! The biggest industrialists give him a salute and that’s
enough. Then the poll plank of governance and decision making. Again, the sole
exemplar of this is Modi! Who cares that a solid majority in Gujarat allows him
to take decisions, and the Congress doesn’t disrupt the assembly there! Then
take alliances. Again, it is Modi personally appealing to Jayalalitha (his
“friend”), Chandrababu Naidu in AP, Raj Thackeray in Maharashtra and of course,
Yeddy in Karnataka…..everything is led by Modi, the super-hero! The party Pres
will just affix his signature where required! The Parliamentary Board – oh that
can be managed! When it comes to commenting on important Congress laws like the
Food Security Bill, it is Modi whose comments sound the loudest. On India’s
relations with neighbors, again, it is only Modi who has the wisdom to opine.
Why, even the BJP’s minority outreach program is fronted by the one and only
Modi (so what if he is suspected to be a Hindu Hriday Samrat by the minority
community!). Modi decides when to shun a skull cap, and when to order people to
wear them at his rally. Modi decides to charge Rs 5 as entry fee, and to change
that the next time. It is Modi all the way!
Fourth, look at our media. It appears that the only
leader traveling the country (only cities, mind you!) is Narendra Modi. TV
channels gave full-speech coverage on Sunday when Modi spoke in Rajasthan. In
contrast, Rahul’s speech in Rajasthan a day later got just a minor mention on
TV. As far as media is concerned, Modi is the Anna of 2011. There is saturation
coverage of Modi. But Modi should not forget the whims of media. He should only
remember the fate that awaited poor Anna once media had wrung him dry. Media
dropped Anna like he was a pariah. Today, one hardly remembers Anna or his long
fast. Modi’s fate could likely go the same way. Media loves Modi today, but
give it a little time, and in spite of Modi’s astute PR skills, he could well
become an equal pariah one day.
Fifth, look at the opposition to the BJP. Today, the
biggest movement has suddenly transformed from anti-Congressism to anti-BJPism.
This is amazing, and has gone mostly unnoticed. This suits the Congress just
fine, giving it time to cover lost ground. Has anyone noticed how the Cabinet
Committee on Investments (CCI) has been been clearing projects at a pace faster
than Chris Gayle’s on his best day out in cricket?! The Congress will find
itself to be the darling of the smaller parties, with both RJD and JD(U) in
Bihar, Jagan and TRS in AP, SP and BSP in UP vying for a deal with it. Equally,
the BJP has been reduced to just 2 allies, with a possibility of AIADMK joining
in later. But surely BJP remembers its experience with this whimsical Southern sultress
from its earlier stint!
This is way beyond a Presidential form of election. Modi is
Romney and Obama folded into one. He is Putin, Merkel, Cameron and Hollande all
bound into one. He is the combination of Amitabh Bachchan, Rajnikanth and
Sylvester Stallone multiplied by ten. He is God! Blessed is India that a new
avatar of God has descended on earth! China, Pakistan, US, Europe….beware! G8
will soon be replaced with the G1. Surely this is the golden era for India!
The real truth is that the BJP was always, by geographic
spread, a regional party with a presence in the West, and part of the North.
Now it has shrunk further and become a one-leader party. Looks like the BJP has
found its manna from the skies…..and its magic mantra!
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