RSS WALKING AN EXTRA MILE

I woke up at 6 in the morning to the chants of “mother India,”(Namaste sada vatsle matribhume). A motley group of 10-15 lads were jumping and crossing ropes in the field. It is usual morning ritual beside my apartment in Vasundhara (East Delhi) The whistle blowing group leader charges youth to run fast and faster in the field.

It was going on for long time but enthusiasm and fervor was missing. But for some time participation seems to have increased many times since Modi government came to power. Shakhas or the training centres of the RSS have gained strength with new entrants coming and joining the ranks thick and fast.

The field near my apartment used to be the place, where youths in their teens were eating and smoking banned substances. They have been replaced by cheering youths. Mobilising directionless youths to join the ranks would be difficult task.

BJP remained out of power for a decade, in those years; RSS ran shakhas with mass support wearing thin.

Shakhas would be set up all across the country and especially in Hindi heartland where BJP lost it to regional parties, namely Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party. During Ram temple movement shakas  used to be a common sight. RSS would walk an extra mile to bring those dalits to the training camps, who were watching it from sidelines. It remains to be seen, how SP&BSP react to it.

On the political front, BJP government at the centre would try to engage those close to RSS and its affiliates to bring them into mainstream politics. This is a long drawn process. Those who are watching politics in Delhi vouch for Modi's reticence.

"Modi would be the last man to allow RSS and its affiliates taking centrestage, given his autocratic style of functioning."

Modi, who has been trained in traditional Sangh family, has however adopted conciliatory tone much to the surprise of secular class. It's a long road ahead; country will see many more churning. Country would see politics changing its shades.

Hooda, Haryana, tennis and exit polls

Haryana is waiting with bated breath; who will be the next chief minister of the state? Will BJP make government own its own, will INLD will be the single largest party or will there be a coalition government? These were not easy questions to answer until various pollsters made it easy to decipher the highest ever voting percentage. Chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who ruled the state for 10 years, was seen playing tennis with his classmates at the CM house, where he lived for 10 years happily. In all these years Hooda made tennis his favourite pastime, he made no bones about his love for the game. His energy, his vitality perhaps came from the game, he always claimed. It may be his last few days at the CM house. He will perhaps miss the tennis court, which he made for great care. I remember my numerous interactions with Hooda, while he was simply an MP and after he became CM. Hooda looked to me as a hardworking politician, who was keen to make change. But he always appeared to be a weak administrator. Many politicians berate his achievements but I find that Hooda has already made his mark in state politics. I go back to the days when Bhajanlal was the tallest leader of the party not the Hooda. He managed to sideline him and finish his entire clan with great smartness. He dealt with many senior politicians, who were his adversaries. Kuldeep Bishnoi lost his sheen after he departed from congress. Birender Singh quit the party. Rao Birender Singh, too, left the congress after his rather prolonged the party. Those who survived in congress were Kumari Selja, Randeep Surjewal and Kiran Choudhary but they were not so vocal, not a great political threat. As a politician Hooda has been greatly successful but as a chief Minister his achievements will be questioned.

When Modi goes on AIR, TV follows him

When did you last tune into All India radio? When did you last check whether your transistor works perfectly? I do recollect how radio disappeared from our collective consciousness. For those who were born in 70’s and 80’s, radio was their first love. TV and more so color television came into our lives much later. Internet came much later, in late 1990s.

Gone are days when radio used to be our only source of breaking news. Our romance started with AIR and famously bloomed with BBC Hindi service. Every household could afford couple of radio sets. Radio reigned supreme. 

 We used to expect newsbreaks during bulletins in the morning and then for whole day, it used to be all quite on all fronts till noon. In the evening, it was a collective radio listening session. 

Who cared if radio will ever make a comeback? Till Prime Minister Narendra Modi discovered the power of radio.

I was reading BBC’s news site when I saw a proper report on Modi’s unique way of reaching out to the millions of people, who have no access to the television, no access to electricity.

The address titled as Mann ki baat (a talk from the heart), ran on state run AIR, FM channels and community stations. No other government in the past thought about exploiting AIR’s huge reach. What Modi plans to do is not original, US president reaches out to countrymen on weekly basis or whenever they wish. But unlike India, there is no noise.

It is not a secret that Modi wants to use government media to reach out to the citizens and he is exactly doing that.

All India radio claimed that Modi reached to 1.2 billion of population and broadcast covered 99 per cent of Indian territories.  

Why it didn’t occur to other leaders? Who nobody could think about the huge potential of radio?

Modi has given indication that he will work for the betterment of DD and Air. One would be surprised to see all private channels, which used to charge heftily from government for airing even social messages, are doing it free of cost. Media watchers say this is all about selling your ideas.

Naysayers would cast gloom and allege that Modi’s new ways will not solve country’s problems but he has reached out to a segment, whose needs were never catered to. 

All out war in Maharashtra

BJP-SENA alliance collapses, NCP-Congress tie-up also breaks. It’s official. 25 years-old BJP-Shiv Sena alliance is over. “With a heavy heart, we have broken away from alliance,” says BJP. Parleys between both parties on seat sharing were on for long time but it did not work out. BJP says Sena was too greedy. BJP says sena had its eyes on chief minister’s chair and they did not care about smaller parties. 

It appears that relation between both the parties soured beyond redemption. This might affect the outcome in Maharashtra. This will throw some big surprises as well as opportunities in the pre and post poll scenario. 

If one ponders over the reasons for collapse of alliance, merely failure of seat sharing doesn’t look like the one big reason. To understand this, one ought to go little deeper. Let’s try to decipher some reasons which are apparent.

One, Shiv Sena won 18 seats but got just one ministerial berth at the Centre. This made Sena cadre little uneasy.

Two, Sena had made its view public when Modi’s name was not shortlisted for the post of Prime Minister. Samna made it preferences clear in its September 9, 2012 edition of Samna paper that they prefer Sushma over Modi. Uddhav, too, repeated this many times. Modi didn’t like this.

Third, after Gopinath Munde’s death Uddhav was trying to dominate the proceedings in Maharashtra, which BJP top brass did not like.

Fourth, Modi doesn’t like to be dictated when he has got such a great majority in the Lok Sabha polls. Rather he would like to dominate relationship.

In the dramatic turnaround, NCP has also decided to break away from Congress. NCP knows that congress was riddled with innumerable scams. Holding their hands and contest elections would not help them in polls.  Congress can hope against hope to do well in elections, but there is no reason to believe this. All four parties will go to polls alone. It’s all out war out there.

Modi,Muslim, Myth And Indian Media

Prime Minister with CNN's Fareed Zakaria

Modi has spoken the truth. Finally. But why he took years to tell the world about what he thinks about Indian Muslim? 

The image of Modi declining to wear Muslim skull cap appears on TV time and again, whenever there is mention of Muslim-vs-Modi debate. 

The big question is, does this image exist, or it has been crafted over the years by the media, who abhors every step Narendra Modi takes.

See precisely what Modi said in an interview with the CNN’s Fareed Zakaria. Modi in answer to CNN’s question, whether Indian Muslim’s will follow Al Queda’s appeal? Or will they join Queda forces against their own country?

Modi here makes strong statement by saying, “every Indian Muslim lives for India and they will die for India. Indian Muslim’s loyalty to the country can’t be questioned? This is one statement which I think answers all misgivings about what Modi thinks Muslims."

We all know Modi doesn’t believe in traditional definition of secularism, what Congress and other secular parties have been following.

Since the days of Gujarat pogrom, Modi has been hated by lot of people. Even his historic victory in LS-2014 was termed as the “end result of hate politics.” This is when SC absolved him all cases related to Gujarat riots.

On social media, his every move is being seen with pinch of hatred. Modi, on the other hand, has proved his detractors wrong. He silenced his opponents by doing what was never expected off him.

Let Modi do what he has spoken. Let Modi prove what he has said. That’s all about real politik.       

Sitting with Sania Mirza

Sania Mirza sitting with the Prime Minister. Long before she met Namo, they chatted on twitter. PM invited her to his office. 

In fact, I take you a week back when Modi congratulated her after winning US mix doubles. Top players meet the PM after winning major tournaments.
People would ask, what is so great about it. 

But I feel there is much more to it than what actually appears. If one remembers correctly, Sania Mirza was object of scorn after she was made brand ambassador of newly carved Telangana state. Those who were opposing this move vociferously were also from BJP and other right wing organisations.Do u think, Modi failed them after meeting Sania Mirza, who is married to a Pakistani cricketer. Modi didn’t criticise his them but he gave very subtle message that what they were doing was not fair. And this will not go on. This will not go a long way. I found Modi's action was a repeat of what Atal Behari Vajpayee used to do on regular intervals by sending stern and subtle messages time and again.

For ruling India, which is a multi-ethnic, multi-religious country, one needs to understand the very fabric of India. Modi has a long way to go. Understanding India's Ganga-jamuni tahzeeb is always a tough business.

Why can't Modi-Rajnath live together?

Well, the time is up for Rajnath Singh one may say. Thakur face of BJP, home minister Rajnath Singh spoke about conspiracy theory that was being hatched to malign him. Bad words were spread about him not by opposition leaders but by party colleagues. This is what Rajnath said in his recent outburst.

What has been written and spoken about in last few days about internecine feud is only reflection of what ails the government setup.

Grapevine is that like Atal, Advani and MMJ trio,will we see Rajnath next going into oblivion. Well, off course not. Not so soon.

Rajnath has no love lost with the PM though this was the best pair which brought BJP to power. This camaraderie seems to be breaking. This relationship seems to have lost its sheen. 

BJP and RSS have taken this seriously as why Rajnath had to break his vow of silence. Was it sudden or premeditated outburst?

Rajnath, who is thakur face of BJP, knows for sure that PM Modi is on a roller coaster. He is in complete control of RSS, BJP and the government. Modi has silenced his opponents, now this is the time to turn to an imaginary enemy, who could be trouble maker for the future.

People are this question in the corridors of power, who could be the imaginary enemy? Any point for guessing?

Rajnath Singh is number two in the government, and, to say the least, attempts are afoot to corner him. That says a lot about the growing tussle within the government.

But this is how system runs. Modi might have become powerful but system doesn’t allow him to become absolutely powerful. There is always an internal resistance under which leader has to perform.

India saw Atal behari Vajpayee and LK Advani working in tandem for almost five decades. Modi and Rajnath can take leaf out the book, which both of them tacitly followed for the longest possible time.