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BJP’s new sense of purpose

Grit and tenacity are encrypted in the DNA of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Nothing illustrates this more than its remarkable comeback after being nearly written off. The new glow was there for all to see at the just-concluded party national executive. Both Rajnath Singh and shadow Prime Minister Lal Krishna Advani revelled in the blossoming of the lotus in Karnataka. Indeed, in Mr. Advani’s view, Karnataka was a “turning point” comparable in magnitude and importance to what was witnessed in the 1989 general election — when the BJP’s Lok Sabha tally shot up from a mere two to 86. Party leaders flayed the Manmohan Singh government, declared it unfit to continue, and thundered that the National Democratic Alliance was now unstoppable. This is the same party that almost crumbled following its shock defeat in the May 2004 general election. Over the next three years, obstructionist behaviour typical of a bad loser, infighting, and a sense of drift seemed to be the BJP’s hallmark. A recovery from the lows that the principal opposition party had plumbed seemed improbable, if not impossible, and more so after its humiliating rout in the May 2007 Assembly election in the one-time saffron bastion of Uttar Pradesh.

It speaks to the BJP’s robust sense of purpose that within a space of six months, it has transformed from a bitterly divided house to a party united by a common mission. Today it is on a winning streak, with successive victories in Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, and now Karnataka. More amazingly, with 2009 looming large, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has swallowed its pride with respect to Mr. Advani and Narendra Modi. Who would believe today that till recently the two were on the Sangh’s hit list? Yet as always, there are caveats to this seemingly new and shining chapter in BJP’s history. Take the party’s off-again, on-again dalliance with Hindutva. Mr. Rajnath Singh’s opening speech suggested that the once pet issues of cultural nationalism, (abrogation of) Article 370, and the uniform civil code were back on the BJP agenda. Mr. Advani’s emphasis, however, was on co-opting the BJP’s ideological opponents. If the two conveyed divergent paths, Mr. Jaswant Singh added to the confusion by virtually denouncing the formation of a secular government in Nepal. Mr. Singh claimed that as a Hindu, he felt diminished by the ouster of the Hindu king. The statement came as a shock to those raising an early toast to the BJP’s new moderation: it was proof, if any were needed, that the party was fundamentally illiberal. If the NDA is to expand into a genuinely cohesive alliance — currently it is a rump — the BJP must go beyond tactical shifts and embrace moderation as much in thought as in action.

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