Modi-cine for the Sangh Parivar

To be Hindu or not to be Hindu, that is the question. After Debacle 2004, the Sangh Parivar has plunged into an identity crisis. As the BJP ...

To be Hindu or not to be Hindu, that is the question. After Debacle 2004, the Sangh Parivar has plunged into an identity crisis. As the BJP national executive meets in Mumbai, its manifesto ‘The Tasks Ahead’ speaks of development but also of cultural nationalism. Will the BJP forge ahead as a Vajpayee-style moderate force? Or will it revert to its ideological Hindutva roots? One man embodies the saffron dilemma and he is Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, icon for some, hate figure for others. Former prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee called for a reappraisal of the Gujarat riots. At the same time party president Venkaiah Naidu asserted that the removal of Modi was a closed matter. This leads us to the conclusion that the Modi-fication of the BJP is a highly divided process and the removal of the Gujarat Chief Minister is a potent symbol of the Sangh’s future. Presenting those who want Modi out and those who want Modi in:

MODI OUT

Keshubhai Patel
Former chief minister of Gujarat and senior BJP leader in the state. Still chafing from the belief that Modi stole his chief ministerial chair and worked overtime to create anti-Modi feelings among MLAs. He definitely wants Modi to go.

Atal Behari Vajpayee
The former prime minister is justifiably anxious for his place in history as well as for his continuing importance within the BJP. He wants Modi out not only for the ascendancy of his own moderate politics but also to safeguard his legacy of Vikas Purush and tolerant Hindutva.

MODI IN

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Pramod Mahajan
The strategist of the BJP, he wants to wait until the Maharashtra assembly elections are over before Modi is removed. The amateur psephologist met his Waterloo in the general election. Now with polls imminent in Shiv Sena country, Mahajan doesn’t think he should take any further risks .

M Venkaiah Naidu
BJP president who generally opens his mouth to exchange feet. Having declared that Modi matter was closed, he said it would be ‘‘looked at’’ before declaring once again that it was closed. Naidu is generally believed to be His Master’s Voice (in this case L K Advani) when it comes to public utterances.

FENCESITTERS

Arun Jaitley
Remarkably silent on the issue of Modi this time, even though he was once his closest ally. Has mumbled something about Modi’s ‘‘autocratic methods’’ but is generally resoundingly and uncharacteristically quiet on the fate of the Gujarat CM.

L K Advani
Equally silent as Jaitley on the Modi removal question. Generally regarded as a hardliner within the Sangh, Advani would have been expected to speak up strongly for Modi. The fact that he has chosen not to makes it difficult to gauge Advani’s Modi mood.