By Sunil Gatade and Venkatesh Kesari
There is a method in the madness. BJP is again mixing Hindutva with nationalism. It has consciously chosen the Operation Sindoor phraseology in the recent conflict with Pakistan. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on familiar territory. Time will tell how much he can pull in this time.
The race to campaign for state elections has begun. BJP might have dismissed reports that its workers plan to go door-to-door distributing sindoor (vermilion); the fact that plans are afoot to reach out to people from June 9, the first anniversary of the third term of Modi, is a signal that ‘Operation Sindoor’ will be politically exploited to the hilt.
A potent blend in elections
Modi knows best how to do it. He has used the religio-political cocktail to telling effect since his days in Gujarat as Chief Minister, since early 2000s. In 2002, it was the Godhra aftermath that not only stabilised but also entrenched the BJP in power, and the rest is history.
Detractors might disagree or would say different things, but the fact is that the Hindutva mobilisation that had started with LK Advani’s Ram Rath Yatra way back in the 1990s has reached its climax under Modi, notwithstanding all the controversies.
During the Gujarat days, Modi played the tune like a war hero, projecting himself as the ‘chowkidar’ in the wake of the communal riots. His message to the five crore odd Gujaratis was that on December 12, the day of the voting in the 2002 polls, they should ensure that “Congress ke bara bajenge” (Congress is roundly defeated), and then they should just relax and enjoy, and “I would be the chowkidar for the next five years, diligently looking after your security day and night”.
The cult of Modi was in the making in the post-Godhra period, where he sought to project the Congress as a party of Muslims/pro-Muslim organisation. The region suffered the repeated conquests of the Mohammed of Ghazni and was ruled by the Mughals and their nobles later.
The moral of the story is that there was fertile ground to turn Gujarat into the Hindutva laboratory, and Modi was not found wanting in any way. It goes without saying that Modi became the ‘bugbear’ of the anti-BJP forces from the Gujarat days.
A new iteration of the ‘Ayodhya card’
Cut to the present: Modi, in military fatigues, in reality or in posters. The aim is to portray him as the ‘strong leader’ who would rebuff any misadventures of the enemies of the nation. Critics and detractors may disagree. The image that is sought to be projected is the same as in the Gujarat polls: Modi as “chowkidar” who is dedicated to the cause to the core. Right or wrong is for people to judge.
It is an extension of the ‘Ayodhya card’ that has brought the party to the centre of Indian politics. In the Karnataka elections held two years ago, BJP's theme was Hanuman. It was even announced to have a temple of Hanuman in each district.
So, Sindoor is an extension of the Hindutva philosophy/votebank of the BJP. The approach of the BJP is that, for having dominance in an election, it ought to have an emotional issue.
Sindoor in connection with the conflict with Pakistan turns into a sentimental affair for the majority community, given the fact that the neighbouring country is an Islamic one. Pakistan has often been used by Modi in elections since his Gujarat days. So, Sindoor fits the BJP fine in sending the message across.
A 40-year journey to dominance
The graph of the BJP, which had secured just two seats in the 1984 Lok Sabha polls, held in the backdrop of the assassination of Indira Gandhi, has been on the ascendant since then. Its Ram Mandir plank has not only brought it to the centre of Indian politics but also triggered the decline of the Congress as well as the politics of secularism.
Two years back, BJP’s plans to retain power in the Assembly elections in Karnataka by invoking Lord Hanuman, whose birthplace is believed to be in the southern state, failed to cut ice in the face of the growing anti-incumbency against the ruling dispensation in the state. Congress's charge of a “40 percent commission” by the incumbent regime turned the tables. Congress also blunted the Hanuman card with its state chief D. K. Shivakumar embarking on a visit to a Hanuman temple and also pledging to build a Hanuman temple in each and every district of the state.
All in all, the Sindoor theme is in line with Modi’s sobriquet of ‘Hindu Hruday Samrat’ that has paid him rich dividends for the past quarter of a century. The bravery of the armed forces could best be utilised by a ‘strong leader’ to further his footprint, goes the argument. The opposition is remembering Indira Gandhi day in and day out, which is proof of that.
(Sunil Gatade and Venkatesh Kesari are journalists.)
Views are personal and do not represent the stand of this publication.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
