Opinion View from the right: Inevitable change
At a time when veteran BJP parliamentarians like L.K. Advani, M.M. Joshi and Jaswant Singh are feeling the pains of a formal change of guard in the run-up to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
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At a time when veteran BJP parliamentarians like L.K. Advani, M.M. Joshi and Jaswant Singh are feeling the pains of a formal change of guard in the run-up to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the editorials of both the Organiser and Panchjanya underscore the importance of change by looking at the re-launched magazine version of the weekly tabloid.
“Change is the most inevitable but equally resisted reality of life,” the Organiser editorial says, advocating the need for the old to readjust to the new reality: “change does not mean de-linking from [the] past. In fact, it is a process of building on the wisdom of [the] past and readjusting to the present so that [the] future is shaped up”.
The editorial in Panchjanya stresses that even the country is bracing up for a change: “Apart from the change in the journal, the echoes of a systematic change across the country could be heard very clearly now. The chorus of voices concerned about India and seeking change can be heard…”
SPECIAL ROLE
In an interview, RSS number two Suresh “Bhaiyyaji” Joshi admits that the RSS has decided to play a “special role” in the run-up to the polls, something RSS cadres did during the Emergency. “There is no struggle against a dictatorship, but a collective movement to depose the present corrupt and inefficient government that is functioning against the aspirations of the people. There are manifold challenges before the nation and uncertainty about the future. Taking strong public sentiment into consideration, the Sangh has decided to play a special role,” Joshi has been quoted
by Panchjanya.
As for the specific role of pracharaks and RSS officials, Joshi says the emphasis is on making voters “alert” about their votes. He, however, plays down the impression that his organisation is lending support to the BJP, suggesting instead that the “RSS has always supported everyone who strives for the national interest”.
MODI EFFECT
Both weeklies have published the results of an exclusive nationwide opinion poll that indicates a “Modi Effect” across the country. The Organiser cover story points out that, in northern India, “there are more than 48 per cent people” who “support Narendra Modi for the post of prime minister against 27 per cent people who are supporting Rahul Gandhi”. But it underlines a “southern breeze for Rahul Gandhi”, as the “lack of party (BJP) organisation is making him (Modi) number two choice” in southern India. But, it highlights that Modi’s popularity surpasses that of Rahul and regional leaders like Mamata Banerjee and Naveen Patnaik in central and eastern India. Modi remains “all the way” the single choice in western India by a huge margin, as compared to Rahul Gandhi. The cover story declares “Young India Maange More” to reflect the yearning for change.
Compiled by Ravish Tiwari
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