Opinion And the Sangh said Modi

“We had two options. Either let Advani have his way,or help the BJP bring in Modi. We chose the latter,as there was a danger of the BJP being perceived as a prisoner of its past,had it succumbed to Advani’s pressure tactics,” a senior RSS functionary,who is a mediator between the patriarchal body of all right-wing groups and its political arm,the BJP,explained to this writer Sunday morning,even as the formal announcement of Modi’s elevation was awaited.

The irony,however,was not lost on Advani,who was once the RSS’s favourite. The RSS chose to pay no heed to the octogenarian for the same reasons it once had disregarded Modi. The RSS believes that no individual should grow larger than the organisation. It was this principle that had come in the way of smooth relations with the BJP’s first prime minister,Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The former prime minister had attained a larger-than-life image,which had set him on a collision course with the RSS. Such was Vajpayee’s popularity that the RSS couldn’t replace him with the more Parivar-friendly Advani. It could project him only as a successor to Vajpayee.

Things started going against Advani when he extolled the secular credentials of Pakistan’s founding father,Mohammad Ali Jinnah,during a trip to the neighbouring nation in 2005. This self-goal by Advani irked the RSS. At this point,the RSS concluded that Advani,too,was stepping into Vajpayee’s shoes by projecting himself as the party’s secular,more acceptable and moderate face,even when there were enough indicators that he would be leading the BJP in the 2009 elections. The RSS was disappointed because it always believed in Advani,and his praise of Jinnah was seen as a clear betrayal. The RSS’s belief that Advani was more suited to carry out its Hindu agenda were dashed by his comments in Pakistan. So,when all efforts to make him withdraw or apologise over his remarks failed,Advani became persona non grata for the RSS.

This resulted in Advani being isolated within the BJP. Interestingly,it was Modi who was seen to be helping Advani during his hour of crisis. Then the RSS’s darling,Modi mediated to re-establish Advani as the real “hardliner”. Modi was merely returning the favour,as it was Advani who had stood by him after the 2002 riots in Gujarat. Advani had stoically defended Modi when Vajpayee was in favour of replacing Gujarat chief minister. Advani was successful in prevailing upon Vajpayee and other Modi-bashers,arguing that Modi’s removal would send the wrong message to the cadres who were behind him. Modi survived thanks to Advani’s efforts.

Advani would have regained that lost ground had he delivered success in the 2009 general elections. But his failure to win a majority for the party resulted in his further isolation. From there on,Advani,according to the RSS,was someone who was playing for himself,and not for the party. Advani’s refusal to play a larger statesman-ideologue role,considering his age,further alienated him from the Sangh.

On the other hand,the BJP was desperately looking for a leader with a modern face. It had only one choice: Modi. The RSS saw in Modi a leader much like the Advani of 1990. It had no problem supporting Modi,since he had so far avoided making any of the mistakes made by his mentor,Advani. Modi’s calculated risk of not projecting a moderate face was clearly a winner as far as the RSS was concerned. However,Modi still had one flaw,that of showing disregard to the party and the Parivar. Modi had to dial back the arrogance two back-to-back electoral victories in state assembly elections had induced,and he took corrective steps the moment he sensed an opportunity to fill in the slot at the national level. He quickly mended fences with the RSS and the party cadre.

The rest,as they say,is history. The BJP was left with no choice but to declare him as the party’s campaign committee chief. What happened in Goa was a mere formality. However,Advani’s steadfast refusal to come on board while the party was witnessing the arrival of GenNext was unanticipated. For the first time since its inception,the BJP is trying to come out of the shadow of the Vajpayee-Advani era.

And it needs to,because the party feels that the first/second-time voter in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections may vote for Modi’s media-manicured pro-development image without being influenced by his controversial past. If that happens,Advani will also realise that while he can afford to live in a time-warp,he cannot compel his party to stay there with him.

The writer is editor,‘Loksatta’,girish.kuber@expressindia.com