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BJP crisis continues

	May 16, 2005

The ongoing crisis in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) deepened last week with former Gujarat Governor Sunder Singh Bhandari as well as party general secretary Pramod Mahajan criticising the handling of the post-Godhra riots in the state by both the Narendra Modi Government and the then Vajpayee Government ruling at the Centre. Sunder Singh Bhandari who was Gujarat Governor at the time of the Godhra violence and subsequent riots, in an interview published in a Hindi weekly said that four to six hours’ delay in taking action was a major factor in worsening the situation in the riot hit state. He said the situation would not have worsened if the Central leadership had reacted immediately. Bhandari said : “I had only one complaint and that was the Government failed to take action on time. Had it taken timely action, many things would not have happened.”

In an indirect attack on bete noire L.K. Advani, who was instrumental in denying him a chance to lead the BJP, Bhandari said the removal of the Gujarat Chief Minister was one of the ways which could have set the house in order, but other options could also have been tapped.

Incidentally, former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was favouring the removal of Modi, but the then Deputy Prime Minister Advani along with some Cabinet Ministers like Arun Jaitely had mounted pressure on the then Prime Minister to change his mind.

Bhandari also commented on the leadership issue in the BJP, virtually stating that the race is between “Advani and Advani.” Except for short three or four stints by others in the presidential position, it was always Advani who came back to assume the party president’s mantle. He added unequivocally that it was time for the two senior leaders to make room for a younger leadership.

Bhandari’s comments came in the course of an interview published in the weekly Hindi magazine, Outlook Saptahik.

A day after his interview in the Hindi magazine, Bhandari said in a television interview that there is need for a thorough inquiry into the failure of the Narendra Modi Government to contain the post-Godhra riots.

Asked if he was not blaming an individual or the way Modi handled the riots, Bhandari said, “The point is let the inquiry bring out facts. If something is necessary on the basis of the inquiry then only I will be able to say.”

Bhandari said that Modi and the BJP leadership failed to respond quickly and firmly to control the communal violence.

Earlier in the week, party general secretary Pramod Mahajan in an article in the party mouthpiece, BJP Today, described the post-Godhra riots in Gujarat as the BJP’s second regret after Ayodhya and a black spot for any civilized society. Mahajan virtually rubbished the party’s defence of Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s handling of the situation pointing out that the BJP was in the Government both at the Centre and in Gujarat. Mahajan said : “The Gujarat riots proved a dampener to our resolve to turn India into a riot-free nation.” He described the Godhra tragedy and the incidents that followed immediately afterwards in February-March 2002, as a”black spot for any civilised society.” His “first regret” was the Vajpayee Government’s failure to build the Ram Mandir at Ayodhya.

In an indirect reference to the ongoing factionalism within the organisation, Mahajan said : “The third matter of concern is the internal situation in the party.” It can be recalled that after L.K. Advani took over as party president, there have been several instances of indiscipline and factionalism within the organisation. Uma Bharati was the first to raise the banner of revolt against the central leadership.



Appointment of state unit presidents further fuels unrest

The central leadership of the BJP has appointed new state unit presidents in several states. In Madhya Pradesh, Shiv Raj Singh Chauhan, one of the six general secretaries of the party has been appointed the state unit president. He belongs to the other backward classes (OBC) and his appointment is seen as another move to clip the wings of former Chief Minister and firebrand BJP leader Uma Bharati, who also belongs to the OBC category. Chauhan is a known critic of Uma Bharati. At the same time, the leadership has decided to appoint former Chief Minister Kailash Joshi as Prabhari (incharge) of the party in Madhya Pradesh. This is expected to contain the damage caused by Uma Bharati’s rebellion against the party leadership.

In Gujarat, Narendra Modi has got a boost with the appointment of Vajubhai Vala as president of the BJP’s state unit. His appointment is a setback for the dissident lobby in the state. During the last few months when there were increasing demands for Narendra Modi’s removal, Vajubhai Vala had remained equi-distant from both the Narendra Modi and the Keshubhai Patel dissident camps. Keshubhai Patel is reported to have opposed Vajubhai Vala’s appointment. There are no signs of a truce in the state unit after the fresh appointment. Dilip Patel, a dissident MLA and former Minister said : “Our anti-CM campaign will continue. A group of MLAs opposed to the Chief Minister’s style of functioning will meet in Gandhinagar on Tuesday to rework the strategy to carry on with the campaign.”

Vala replaces Rajendrasinh Rana, who has been holding fort even after his term expired more than two years ago. Over that period, the two camps have fought bitterly.

In Jharkhand, the appointment of Yadunath Pandey as president of the party unit in the state has led to a revolt by former Chief Minister Babu Lal Marandi. Taking exception to Advani’s nomination of Yadunath Pandey, Marandi threatened to quit the party if the decision was not reconsidered. He said : “The party should immediately consider its decision as it was taken under pressure from a section of the party. If my demand is not met, I would keep aloof from the party and prefer to sit on the sidelines.”

Terming the appointment of Pandey “anti-party and undemocratic,” the former Chief Minister said he had nothing personal against Pandey, but such decisions were not good for the future of the party. He was apparently taking a dig at the party leadership leaning towards Chief Minister Arjun Munda and organisational secretary Hridayanath Singh.



TDP moves away from BJP, flirts with Third Front

The Telugu Desam Party has blamed its association with the Bharatiya Janata Party for the defeat in last year’s Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh. TDP Chief N. Chandrababu Naidu said in Hyderabad that the BJP link had a negative effect on the minority vote bank. Naidu’s remarks came in the wake of his warming up to a relationship with the Left parties and constituents of the erstwhile United Front. In recent weeks, Naidu has been in touch with Mulayam Singh Yadav, Sharad Pawar, Prakash Karat and M. Karunanidhi.

Reacting to Naidu’s remarks, the BJP said that on the other hand, the party suffered because of its association with the TDP. BJP vice president Venkaiah Naidu said that the anti-incumbency factor in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh affected the BJP performance in the Lok Sabha elections.

In a related development, six TDP workers were killed in police firing in Anantapur district during the filing of nominations for the Penukonda assembly by election on May 13. The incident happened when police opened fire to control the mob of TDP workers trying to force their way into the Revenue Divisional Office. TDP president Chandrababu Naidu has demanded a judicial inquiry into the incident.