Bolt from Bihar Saturday, September 19, 2009

In the May general Elections, Bihar stood as a rock with the BJP - JDU alliance, giving them 31 out of 40 seats in the Lok Sabha. Yesterday, results of by-elections for 18 seats in the assembly saw Nitish suffer a major setback. His alliance with the BJP won 5 seats as against 8 won by Lalu Yadav - Paswan alliance. This is a complete turn around in just four months.

JDU - BJP is now making the classic mistake of blaming the defeat to 'local factors'. This is an ostritch like approach, which ignores the main issues.

First, The JDU has become a rest house (Sarai) for all members of the RJD - Mr Lalu Yadav's party. Nitish keeps on admitting all and sundry who are shifting from the other camp. The JDU is becoming a sanitised version of the RJD - the same people except Mr Yadav. People may have decided to vote for the 'real' thing, rather than an imitation.

Second, Good governance was the mainstay of the JDU-BJP campaign. This is not a political philosophy. Good governance is part of the basic duties of a political outfit. What is the big deal?

Third, most important, the Lok Sabha victory resulted in arrogance among the JDU-BJP leaders. This is political suicide. The people quickly show you your place if you are arrogant. Politicians are usually surprised to find that the purpose of politics is to serve the people, not vice versa.

The people of India are wise. In May 2009, they rejected the LKA led BJP alliance in MP, Uttarakhand and Gujarat. In the by-elections they have voted for th respective BJP led govts. Because, they did not appreciate the high and might airs of the central leadership, but accept the down to earth approach of the state leaders. This is a lesson that Sonia Gandhi has understood very clearly. No airs, no arrogance, dedication towards serving the people. This is a lesson that Atal Behari Vajpayee never needed, because he was made that way - simple, humble, caring for the people of India.

Slence is not always golden Saturday, September 12, 2009

Politicans are expected to lead by their views. This was very true of the BJP. Atal Behari Vajpayee, L K Advani, expounded the views of the party on all appropriate occassions. Then, the second generation leaders came in speaking for the party, fairly clearly. A discordant note started after the BJP came in power, with ministers / party officials suddenly developing airs. In 2004, during the election campaign, Mr Venkaiah Naidu was the party president. His favorite theme was 280 and 360. He said, I have set a target of 280 seats for the BJP and two thirds majority for the NDA. Who was he to set targets? It is for the people to decide. Sonia Gandhi carried a much humbler campaign, and, won.

The period 2004-2009 went away with the leadership in a daze. They abandoned their supporters while josting for supremacy inside the party.

Now, the chance has come for the BJP to connect with its supporters. Unfortunately, after weeks of sordid drama, the leadership has suddenly decided that silence is the best way to lead. When the entire party apparatus suddenly shuts up, it is another way of abandoning your supporters.

So, speak out. Talk about the issues facing the country, talk about the issues facing the party, comfort your supporters, lead the country.

Empower the People Tuesday, September 8, 2009

In swapan's blog (http://www.swapan55.com/) , the comments section is a powerhouse of thought. If the BJP leaders read it every day, then we can start the celebrations of a 2014 victory.

mpanj makes a point that is THE POINT.

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Remember both Raman Singh and Shivraj Chauhan won (atleast partly) due to their quasi-socialist policies of free rice and welfare schemes.

Should the BJP step away from industrialization/infrastructure building and focus instead on more efficient delivery of hand-outs that successive pseudosecular govts have promised but seldom delivered i.e. Handouts sans corruption. A more efficient mai-baap if you will.

UnQuote

Now, do not think of any activity in terms of winning the elections. Think as a human being: what is it that I should do as a leader to bring smiles on the faces of 115 crore people ?

In India, the answer will be:

Free / Subsidised food for anyone who needs it
Free education for the have-nots
Free medical care for All
Subsidised housing for ALL

This is what the BJP stands for. Infrastrucuture, WTO, income tax etc... etc... are all the methods to achieve these objectives.

Why is the BJP a party with a difference?
Because the BJP will deliver what it says without corruption, with integrity and without any display of absurd wealth of the leaders.

Hindutva is a way of life, NOT a political philosophy. It is living your life with honor and dignity and trying to ensure that everyone around you can also do the same.

A fully democratic party with a clear vision (as above) will make the BJP the natural party of the people for a many years.

Obsessed Monday, September 7, 2009

I am not in the group of people who go against the BJP philosophy (whatever that is). As you will now note, I do not talk about hannij. None of my post have discussed him.

There is a land called the United States of America, with a President named Barrack Obama. He is bent on providing health care to all Americans, irrespective of caste, creed, color and religion. Their entire country is now involved in discussing the merits and demerits of his health care proposals.

In India, we do not care about such silly things as health care for everyone. Since all politicians can get VIP health treatment free of cost, this is a non-issue here. We care for our prestige. Therefore, in full majesty of our respective posts, we pass diktats that show how powerful we are. If anyone talks about hannij. off with his head. Obsessed, really.

Here is a Zen story for you to think about:
Two traveling monks reached a river where they met a young woman. Wary of the current, she asked if they could carry her across. One of the monks hesitated, but the other quickly picked her up onto his shoulders, transported her across the water, and put her down on the other bank. She thanked him and departed. As the monks continued on their way, the one was brooding and preoccupied. Unable to hold his silence, he spoke out. "Brother, our spiritual training teaches us to avoid any contact with women, but you picked that one up on your shoulders and carried her!" "Brother," the second monk replied, "I set her down on the other side, while you are still carrying her."

Bumbling, inept: Yes, but not the Klu Klux Klan Sunday, September 6, 2009

Jaswant Singh did great disservice to himself when he suddenly compared his former party to the Klu Klux Klan. By saying a blatant untruth he removed the martyr's halo which hung over his head and turned himself into just one more typical, selfish, avenging politician. Sad.

His former party, the BJP can be accused of many things, bumbling and inept come quickly to the mind. After all, since we write on the net, we have to be polite. Arun Shourie, with far better command over the Queen's language, described the BJP leaders like 'Alice in Blunderland' and 'Humpty Dumpty'.

I recently read an analysis of the 2009 elections in a blog (I regret, I did not keep the links) which described how Mr Advani went on saying that voters should not vote for the third front. They should stick to the Cong or the BJP. Well, voters took his advice in West Bengal, Kerala, Andhra and Tamil Nadu. And Mr Advani's repeated stress on 'Good Governance'. Surely, this is not a political philosophy by any stretch of imagination. Then, contrast the congress action in refusing a ticket to Sajjan Kumar and Jagdish Tytler because of a Journalist's shoe, and, BJP's repeated insistence that Varun Gandhi will contest come what may.

But the Klu Klux Klan? That is absurd. The KKK, says the wikipedia, has an avowed purpose to protect the rights of and further the interests of white Americans by violence and intimidation. Whome has the BJP intimidated, ever? When the Bangladesh Rifles sent the bodies of 20 BSF personnel, hanging by sticks, what did the Iron man of India, LK Avani who was then home minister, Do? Nothing.

In 1996, a head on crash between two aircraft flying over Haryana (Saudi airlines and Kazakhstan airlines) saw bodies strewn all over the crash site. The RSS came in to volunteer, removed the bodies, This is what the headlines said: (http://www.hvk.org/articles/1097/0054.html)
Muslims salute the RSS
In a signed editorial in his weekly, Jadeed Markaz, published simultaneously in Urdu and Devnagri, its editor and owner Hisam Siddiqui pays handsome tribute to the RSS, the only organisation whose volunteers worked day and night to help the overwhelming Muslim relatives of those who died in the mid-air colision between the Saudi and Kazakh aircrafts in November.

Summary: Jaswant Singh, enamoured of his command over history and the English language unfairly accussed the BJP/RSS of being like the KKK. He knows this is not so. Let him be a man, apologize for this statement.
The BJP, very unfairly expelled Mr Singh. Once Jaswant apologizes, let the BJP rescind his expulsion.

Swapan gets it right!

Swapan Dasgupta is some kind of mentor to all BJP supporters who traverse the internet. His blog (http://www.swapan55.com/) attracts many readers, applause and criticism.

I am pleased to note that Swapan reads the comments carefully, and appears to actually accept ideas that emerge from the comments section. His article in the TOI lamenting why LKA continued as LOP may have been influenced by the comments on his blog. His opinion piece in The Pioneer, today (Sunday, Sept 6) contains thoughts which may have been influenced again by the readers. I take the print edition of the newspaper but I did find the article also on the Pioneer web site at : http://www.dailypioneer.com/200719/Let-legislators-elect-leaders.html
Swapan's article title is: "Let legislatures elect thier leaders." Exactly!

The ability to listen to others is a sign of greatness. Atal Behari Vajpayee had this knack. Now, Swapan seems to have the same ability. Well, well, well.

I blog almost daily at : http://www.india15august.blogspot.com/. I have added an About Me section in the blog.

Cheers for Swapan.

Let a thousand flowers bloom Saturday, September 5, 2009

Swapan's thought provoking article may suffer from a fatal flaw - the either / or presentation.
Either have the RSS and be restricted to 80 seats,
OR, become an umbrella and look for an all India presence.

Let us say the BJP takes in plan B, and becomes an umbrella.
The more sensible questions are:
1. Will the 'leadership' allow free and fair elections to all party and legislative posts?
2. Will they continue with the nomination culture?
3. Will the BJP prevent RSS sympathisers from becoming members of the party?

In fact, the only way to prevent the RSS philosophy from influencing the BJP is to continue business as usual - Continue to have self seeking party leaders.

Now, if the party becomes democratic - all of the points raised by Swapan are redundant. Elected leaders are responsible to their electorate - the members. Elections also ensure a larger participation for a number of people - a thousand flowers will bloom.

The RSS is influencing the BJP only because the BJP central leadership has proved to be inept and completely selfish.

I will give an example. BJP heavyweights are President of two cricket committees - Delhi and Himachal. Now, why should a political person be a chairman of a sports body? What about the one man one post doctrine? What about the arms length doctrine? India is a populous country so what is the need for one person to occupy more than one post? This is the Indian culture, I know, but then the BJP could have been different ! Did the RSS force these gentlemen to become Presidents of the sports associations?

Just change the functioning of the party to a democratic environment and see the spring come in.