Well done Mr Nitin Gadkari very funnily switch down the server. Now leave blaming Congress because BJP is adopting more sinister steps than Congress.Proves something wrong is cooking.The message is symptomatic of a double-disconnect: one between the ordinary BJP worker and his ideological fountainhead, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which put Nitin Gadkari as head of the party; and the other is between the RSS’s own ideal of probity in public life and the declining public image of its man. It can neither back Gadkari fully nor abandon him quickly.
At the heart of it all is a dilemma for the BJP: how can it assert itself without alienating the RSS.
On October 24, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s Vijaya dashami address to swayamsevaks at Nagpur referred to corruption but did not touch on the raging controversy over Gadkari’s questionable source of funding, bogus directors and shell companies. But then he could not have done anything else. “Why should the Sangh chief be responding to the machinations of the media and the UPA government? We know where and how they (the allegations) are coming from,” said an RSS functionary.
The million dollar question from Mohan Bhagwat is "Why ignored Nitin Gadkari corruption issue?"
But this point of view has few takers since “Vyakti Nirman (man building)” is one of the main stated objectives of the Sangh. And BJP workers, by their conduct, are expected to set an example of integrity.
For the time being, the RSS has chosen to keep quiet to figure out its options, but given the palpable disquiet within the BJP’s rank and file, the party’s Nagpur-based mentors will have to take a call on their man, especially if it is going to impact the party’s positioning in the forthcoming parliamentary polls.
More and more BJP leaders are coming round to the view that the settled issue of Gadkari’s second term as party president has just got unsettled and it could just be matter of time before a decent exit is offered to him.
But should that happen, the naming of the next president could be an even more complicated exercise. If a change is to happen, it will have to happen after the Gujarat elections, when Narendra Modi is expected to spend more time and energy to building a national presence.
The two Leaders of the Opposition in Parliament, Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj, may find it of relevance to head the party organisation ahead of the forthcoming general elections, but they too are playing their cards close to their chests.
If party leaders are silent, it’s not because they are unable to see the opportunities thrown up by Gadkari’s discomfiture. It’s just that they don’t want to be seen in an adversarial position vis-à-vis the RSS chief, who played a key role in Gadkari’s elevation to the top job in 2009.
A BJP leader summarised it thus: “It can’t be worse than this. The kind of revelations that are being made make Gadkari’s position completely untenable, particularly his continuance for another three-year term. But the issue is who will bell the cat. Don’t forget what they did to the party’s strongest leader, LK Advani, in the wake of the Jinnah controversy. There was a conscious onslaught by the RSS to weaken his authority. This is a grim reminder to all concerned that they should be on the right side of the Sangh bosses or else face their wrath.”
While the disquiet among younger and second-rung leaders is more apparent, the top leaders are confronted with an even more difficult situation. The decision on Gadkari was thrust on them three years ago and they were again made to bow to the wishes of Nagpur to amend the party’s constitution to enable Gadkari to obtain a second term. They can’t explain to their colleagues down the pecking order that they are so helpless. A top party functionary told Firstpost that “so far it’s a non-issue for those who have to take the decision (RSS). Let’s see how the situation unfolds”. His feeling was corroborated by another senior leader.
Beneath the uneasy calm, a number of informal meetings and phone calls have taken place. Party leaders are looking too see what position Advani takes on the issue. So far he has been supportive of Gadkari on the issue. Sources said he has sought an explanation from Gadkari on the various allegations raised against him. He perhaps does not want to be seen as being in a hurry to judge, but things are fluid as far as Gadkari’s second term is concerned.
Gadkari’s close supporters, on the other hand, are convinced that the current controversy is the handiwork of different official agencies under the Manmohan Singh government. The news was selectively leaked to the media, including for the purpose of diverting attention from the Robert Vadra affair. They also admit that someone from within the BJP top leadership could also have had a hand in it to sabotage Gadkari’s second term.
While agreeing that the controversy has hit the BJP’s image hard, a close supporter of Gadkari said, “Whatever is happening is not against Gadkari as an individual entity, but because he holds the top post in BJP. Gradually, this thinking will sink into the rank and file of the party and they will take a more aggressive posture to protect the party president. This is a temporary phenomenon that will shortly pass over.”
There are a good number of other leaders who point that Advani had resigned on the issue of probity when fictitious hawala charges were levelled against him. Party president Bangaru Laxman’s resignation was taken the same day Tehelka published an expose on him. But since then the time and structure of the BJP has changed. If something like that has to happen this time, the BJP leadership will have to reassert its position as a party vis-a-vis the RSS.
There is no sign of that as yet.
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