Jammu: But for Prime Minister Narinder Modi’s personal charisma, the Bharatiya Janata Party is just like any other political party that is revolving around the orbit of power, prepared to sacrifice principles that once upon a time had distinguished it from other parties. Even the worst critics of BJP would swear for its being a party with difference. However, the power bug has made it so ferocious that principles have got relegated into the back-burner.
Pride to be a Swayamsewak is missing somewhere even as BJP is bulldozing the opponents under Modi machine.
In Jammu and Kashmir, Narendra Modi and his all important party chief Amit Shah have entered with a new plank-get rid of dynastic rule. This is absolutely in consonance with Modi’s sincere desire which he could not resist to pursue even during hard days of competition for being anointed as prime ministerial candidate, ignoring the superior claim of now redundant BJP patriarch or subdued ‘Marg Darshak’ Lal Krishan Advani.
Of course, Narendra Modi is leaving back his brand name, be it in the US, the Australia or the Fiji, or of course back home but his grip on organizations matters is loosening day after day. He is reducing himself mere a participant at most crucial decision-taking deliberations of the party. This is evident from the fact that despite his pronounced presence at the Parliamentary Committee meetings, convened to take final call on the candidates for Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, several names got cleared which certainly lack Modi stamp. For instance, the Modi Doctrine of not even considering the mandate to kin of senior party leaders fell flat with Nand Kishore managing his ticket from Nagrota. If insiders are to be believed, BJP State President and Member Lok Sabha, Jugal Kishore Sharma is reported to have almost threatened for naming his younger brother from the constituency, notwithstanding superior claims of Maharaj Kumar Ajatshatru Singh, who switched over from ruling National Conference to BJP just recently, and old timer Chander Mohan Sharma. The latter had even visited Dansal few days ahead of the announcement of mandates to pick the threads of his campaign from the constituency. The decision of the High Command has disillusioned the party base which is simmering with resentment. The BJP does not seem to have learned lessons from vociferous resentment shown by the party cadre in Haryana when Vandna Sharma, sister of Minister for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj, was fielded from Safidon constituency in the Jind District.
Ironically, the day Nand Kishore’s nomination was cleared and declared, BJP President Amit Shah was raising pitch in Jammu and Banihal against the dynastic rule. He had unleashed a war of words to castigate National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party for encouraging the family rule, thus depriving the people of real ethos of democracy. Shah made scathing attacks on the Kashmir centric so-called mainstream parties but what about his own party? Just today, the Prime Minister also raked up the dynastic rule or “Bhai Bhateejawad” issue while addressing high profile rally at Kishtwar.
Does BJP believe what it practices is sacrosanct and what others, the opponents, do is unethical? The party that distinguished itself as a ‘party with difference’ in different avatars during the past over six and half decades, is now crawling before the compulsion of “Bhai Bateejawad”, which has hurt beyond any repair the finer sentiments of grass roots lever members of the Sangh Parivar. If clinching to power is the only motivation for political parties, then BJP cannot claim itself to be a different-no ways. It was the spirit that had inspired millions of Indians, youth especially, to get aligned with Bhartiya Janata Party decades ago. The sense of pride to be the foot soldier of Bharat Mata by being a Swayamsewak or a member of the Sangh Parivar is missing somewhere, notwithstanding BJP bulldozing the opponents under Modi machine.
