Ending weeks of back-room manoeuvrings at the behest of the RSS, the BJP on Friday named Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi as its prime ministerial candidate for the 2014 Lok Sabha election, leaving veteran leader L.K. Advani, who refused to endorse the decision, as the last man standing.
It’s official: Modi is BJP’s choice
It was preceded by hectic parleys between BJP president Rajnath Singh and two senior leaders opposed to the move — Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj and former party president Murli Manohar Joshi — in a bid to get the duo to fall in line.
Unwise
BJP prepares roadmap for parliamentary polls in UP
It has been claimed that the BJP’s decision to name Narendra Modi as its
prime-ministerial candidate, overruling the reservations voiced by
veteran leader L.K Advani, was in deference to the feelings of the party
cadre. I am reminded of the observation that “leaders spoil their
followers who, in turn, spoil their leaders.”
In order to keep his supporters of militant Hinduism happy, Mr. Modi
will never regret the killing of Muslims in the 2002 riots. By choosing a
person who owes his popularity largely to his carefully chosen acts and
speeches aimed at social polarisation, the BJP has taken an unwise
decision.
___________________________________________________
The BJP’s official declaration that Mr. Modi, projecting himself as a
development icon, is its prime ministerial candidate has put the party
to test.
The BJP can win the 2014 election only if his development identity overshadows his image of a communal leader.
___________________________________________________
The BJP getting a majority in the general election appears a remote
possibility. It will need at least 180-200 seats to form a coalition.
Mr. Modi’s autocratic image poses a threat to his acceptability across
party lines. What if Mr. Modi helps the BJP win 200 seats in 2014 but
doesn’t get the acceptance of his coalition partners to lead? Will the
party and the RSS choose another candidate as Prime Minister?
____________________________________________________
Narendra Modi may have been anointed the principal opposition party
BJP’s prime ministerial candidate for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, but
he does not seem to be in a hurry to relinquish his post as the Chief
Minister of Gujarat and has not even named his successor.
The sources said Mr. Modi wants to consolidate Gujarat further, very
much like Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, and not “make the same
mistake” that former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati made by
travelling across the country after winning a record victory in the 2007
U.P. elections. “She abrogated the government to her bureaucrats and
ministers, thinking she had a good chance to be the Prime Minister but
that misfired,” a U.P. BSP leader told The Hindu.
At the Jamboree Grounds here on Wednesday, Mr. Advani maintained a
foot’s distance from Mr. Modi, forcing BJP president Rajnath Singh to
rush in to fill the gap, when all the leaders were encircled in a large
garland. After Mr. Advani presented bouquets to State Chief Minister
Shivraj Chouhan and Mr. Modi, Mr. Chouhan reflexively touched the
patriarch’s feet and was blessed by him as Mr. Modi looked on.
Mr. Modi then proceeded to touch Mr. Advani’s feet. The leader, who
opposed Mr. Modi’s elevation as the Prime Ministerial candidate, ignored
the gesture and returned to his seat. After the rally, Rajya Sabha MP
Prabhat Jha told The Hindu, “Advani ji gave his ashirwad (blessings)to Modi ji after his speech.”
Mr. Advani, in his speech however, praised Gujarat for being the first
State to grant continuous power supply to its villages. “In some
programmes the speeches don’t matter as much the attendance... Where we
have reached today is not just because of good speeches but due to work
and tapasya (meditation and penance),” he said.
Lucknow,
September 18, 2013
BJP has prepared an elaborate roadmap for the 80 parliamentary seats in
Uttar Pradesh ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, party leaders said.
Senior leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday
brainstormed in New Delhi on an action plan that they need to create to
take maximum advantage of prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi’s
goodwill among the masses.
During the meeting, Uttar Pradesh was divided into eight zones. Public rallies will be addressed by the Gujarat chief minister in all
eight zones. The campaign will culminate in a massive rally in the state
capital.
“The meeting under the chairmanship of party president Rajnath Singh has
given us direction now. After apprising him with the situation in the
state and getting guidance from him and party in-charge Amit Shah, we
have to now become electorally strong,” said state BJP president
Laxmikant Bajpayi.
Senior leaders will now consult party cadres and supporters and make a
list of prominent people they want as contestants from Uttar Pradesh. Some leaders feel that famous personalities from various fields should be pitched in the state to gain maximum advantage.
Party insiders told IANS that there was unanimity that if the
Gujarat chief minister contests from Uttar Pradesh, the party’s fortunes
would definitely become better.
“While this is a matter that the party national leadership needs to take
a call on, there is no doubt that there is support for Narendra bhai.
If he chooses to contest from Uttar Pradesh, we will touch our past
performances of the 1990s,” said a senior party leader.
“People are favouring Modi everywhere and Uttar Pradesh is no different.
They see him (Modi) as someone who will usher in development and that
is a path-breaking phenomenon as far as Uttar Pradesh politics is
concerned,” said state BJP spokesman Vijay Bahadur Pathak.
24 September 2013
Nearly 50 people died in the Hindu-Muslim clashes which erupted on 7
September in India's town of Muzaffarnagar. The riots have been
described as the worst in India in a decade. Tens of thousands of people
fled their homes in the violence. The BBC Hindi's Avinash Dutt Garg
visited the affected region.
"These are politically engineered riots to polarise voters ahead of next year's general elections," says Rajeshwar Dutt Tyagi, a senior lawyer in Muzaffarnagar.
Meanwhile, political parties have accused each other of starting the riots - India's main opposition Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party has blamed the ruling party in the state, Samajwadi Party which, in turn, has blamed leaders of opposition parties in the state, including the BJP, the regional Bahujan Samaj Party and India's governing Congress party.
In the last few days, at least three politicians have been arrested on charges of inciting violence through "inflammatory speeches".
Very well planned. Gujarat riot was an accident. Muzaffarnagar riot was politically engineered.
- 2013 riots in Muzaffarnagar would nullify the 2002 Gujarat riots.
- 2013 riots in Muzaffernagar would give an edge for an entry into UP
- 2013 riots in Muzaffarnagar would bring down both Mulayam and Mayawati.
Had there been no election, there would not have been the riot in Muzaffarnagar.
Had any other person declared as a candidate, Narendra Modi and Amit Shah would not have taken this much risk.
Now, the end drama is in the stage at Varanasi.
Truth is such a powerful script.
சத்தியத்தை ரொம்ப சோதிக்கிறாங்க.
Lal Kishan Advani, right from the beginning, he was doing the right thing.
Reacting to the announcement of Narendra Modi as the
BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar
said wisdom had deserted the BJP and it was heading for a fall.
“One can only say this about them [BJP]: Vinaash kale viprit buddhi
[When you are moving towards self-destruction, even your intellect
deserts you],” Mr. Kumar said on the sidelines of a function on
Saturday.
He said the decision of his party, Janata
Dal (United), to pull out of the NDA in June stood vindicated. “What we
anticipated three months ago is happening now. We took our decision at
the right time,” he said.
The BJP hit back at Mr.
Kumar for his comments. BJP leader and former State Minister Giriraj
Singh said, “Time will tell whose wisdom has failed.”
In
June, the ruling NDA split in Bihar after the JD(U) walked out of the
alliance on the issue of Mr. Modi’s candidature. While in the NDA, Mr.
Kumar had consistently opposed the move. Terming Mr. Modi a “divisive
figure,” he had called for a “secular” candidate for the post of Prime
Minister.
Vinaash kale viprit buddhi
[When you are moving towards self-destruction,
even your intellect deserts you]
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