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BJP : Advice from RSS sparks debate |
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The RSS advice to the BJP to stay independent of the government has sparked off a debate within the party. BJP leaders who are not from the RSS say it is a fresh attempt by the Sangh to re-establish its influence over the party as it is losing ground. What has surprised all is the timing of the Sangh’s missive. It has come just when the relationship between the Vajpayee government and the RSS was improving.
In an article in the latest issue of Panchjanya, the RSS mouthpiece, the Sangh spokesman M.G. Vaidya emphasised the party’s supremacy while advising the BJP not to play second fiddle to the government. “A party that wags its tail to please the government and hides it between the legs when in fear of it would prove to be a useless party,” he said while pointing out that Indira Gandhi had reduced the Congress to its present position.
Referring to Home Minister Advani’s recent advice to the partymen not to express criticism of the government, he said it appeared that the BJP leadership was of the belief that the supremacy of the parliamentary wing was essential in a democracy. The view in the BJP is that Vaidya was articulating the feelings of those party leaders who have RSS background. This group is said to be of the opinion that something must be done urgently to check the downslide in the party’s popularity, sources said.
The BJP sought to downplay the RSS view that the party should be above the Government arguing that ‘’everyone is free to give suggestions but the ultimate decision has to come from the party’’. BJP general secretary Sunil Shastri commenting on the observations made by RSS spokesman said : ‘’The RSS is an organisation. The BJP is a political party. We are capable of deciding on our own’’ Shastri’s comments were non-committal, in tune with the position taken that ‘’the party is supreme” in policy matters while the Government is supreme in administrative matters. There is a Lakshman Rekha (dividing line) between the two.’’ Vaidya had suggested that top party posts, particularly those of the president and general secretaries, be assigned to those who had no ambition to fight elections and occupy positions of power.
Undeterred by the BJP downplaying its advice on the theme of party-superiority, the RSS reiterated that the position of the BJP president within the party should be equivalent to that of the Prime Minister and that nobody, not even Vajpayee, could be above the organisation. Vaidya cited the example of the Congress downfall, attributing it to the concentration of the party and the parliamentary party leadership in one individual. He said, ‘’An organisation deteriorates when it becomes an appendage of the government and lacks an independent role. Within the party, the president should be treated at par with PM.’’
The spokesman argued that the RSS had only taken a theoretical position and expressed its opinion saying it was not binding on anyone. However, he agreed that his observations were prompted by the ‘’communication-gap’’ controversy generated by Vajpayee at the BJP National Council Session. He was gratified to note that Vajpayee had later admitted that the ‘’gap’’ was due to a fault on the part of the Prime Minister’s Office. ‘’It has enhanced the party prestige,’’ he said. On the balance between the party and the government, he said both should have independent roles while maintaining a mutual dialogue. When asked about the RSS moral authority over the BJP, Vaidya said that the Sangh influence over the BJP continued.
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