Why Modi Won’t Let Go of the BJP’s Reins
The inexplicable delay in finding a replacement for J.P. Nadda as president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has set tongues wagging sharply. Nadda was last given an extension till June 2024, and when he was inducted in the Union Cabinet it was understood that the ruling party would soon have a new president. Then, the state polls in Maharashtra and, later, in Haryana were cited as reason for not to letting Nadda go.
Students of realpolitik are not naïve enough to suggest that Nadda is so indispensable to the BJP’s organisational health and vitality. Even the junior-most functionary in the ruling party knows and believes that it is “those two” – a euphemism for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah – who call the shots in organisational matters, however small and insignificant. Nadda’s position, in fact, is far more pitiable than that of Mallikarjun Kharge as the Congress president (vis-à-vis Rahul Gandhi.)
In the larger Sangh Parivar – from Nagpur to Jhandewalan – there are many detractors of the Modi-Shah duo and the twosome’s stranglehold over the BJP is deeply resented. These detractors remain eternally hopeful that at some point or the other, the top RSS leadership would say ‘enough is enough’ with the overdose of the Modi Cult.
These detractors have convinced themselves that even if the “Sangh” is in no position to do anything about Prime Minister Modi’s defiance of the Nagpur brass, Mohan Bhagwat and Co. still have the reach and the resolve to impose a president of their choice on the ruling party who would, then, slow down, if not choke, the Modi-Shah sway over the organisation.
Middle hierarchy of the RSS is no longer in thrall of 'idealism' and 'nobility'
The realists, however, believe that the prime minister-home minister duo already have a measure of the sanghsarchalak and his intimate advisers. Nagpur lost out to New Delhi long ago as the swayamsevaks got a taste of governmental power and patronage; by all accounts, the middle hierarchy of the RSS is no longer in thrall of the “idealism” and “nobility” that was once famously infused by Golwalkar.
The vast majority in the Sangh parivar is no longer unfamiliar with the corrupting allure of power. With contamination comes compromise and a weakening of the “will” that the Sangh believes distinguishes itself from other outfits in the land.
Yet, there is a small minority in the parivar that believes earnestly that in this centenary year, the Nagpur bosses would want to recoup their reputation for high moral idealism. As it is, there is a great deal of discomfort and disillusionment among RSS leaders at the almost institutionalised corruption in the ranks of BJP-led governments across the country. The hope is that the Bhagwat team would want to be able to hoist a president of its preference on the BJP.
The delay in finding a replacement for Nadda is understood as an outcome of the unresolved tussle between Nagpur and New Delhi over a mutually agreeable name. However, there is also a realisation that “Nagpur” no longer wields, if it ever did, a veto in the matter. At best, it is entitled to “consultation” but not “consent.”
Even in the best of times, a prime minister is obliged to ensure that his/her party does not become a site for resistance and trouble. Indira Gandhi had cast this principle in stone in 1969. Whenever a prime minister could not uphold this principle, their authority lost lustre.
Manmohan Singh had to use all his skills of patience and persuasion to ensure that “10 Janpath” was not seen as a source of hostility, despite all the talk of Sonia Gandhi exercising “extra-constitutional authority.” And, to be sure, in 2014 Narendra Modi, as a prime ministerial candidate, promised to restore the PMO’s pre-eminence in the constitutional scheme of things. As prime minister, this is the only promise he can be said to have fulfilled comprehensively.
So, it would really matter very little whether Dharmendra Pradhan or Manohar Lal Khattar or Devendra Fadnavis gets the nod to be the replacement for J.P. Nadda. The party-government equation will not change in any radical manner – certainly not to the prime minister’s disadvantage. Amit Shah would continue to be the de facto president.
An organsation that once used to pat itself on the back for its ‘integrity’ and the importance of ‘sanghathan’ has now fallen prey to the familiar virus of the Leader’s presumed charisma de-institutionalising the political party. Even the BJP’s traditional strength – the thousands, if not millions, of Sangh foot-soldiers making their presence felt on election day – is no longer deemed as a valued asset.
Modi elaborately preening himself as the Warrior-Hero
It is Modi’s popularity and stature – and his administrative ability to ensure the playing field remains un-level – that is seen as sufficient to make voters put their seal on the BJP's candidates.
Meanwhile, the prime minister is elaborately preening himself as the Warrior-Hero of the "Four Day War", officially named as “Operation Sindoor.” Rather shrewdly, he has repeatedly affirmed that the Operation Sindoor has only been paused, not abandoned.
We remain positioned on the battle-field, under his command and inspiration. As the field commander he would demand complete and total autonomy and loyalty to carry on the war. A conflict that is good for arresting the BJP’s decline in public esteem and that helps allows the war-drummers to play the jingoistic numbers.
For now, he is on top of his game in working up the mood against Pakistan and stoking nationalistic fervour. This mobilisation is as much aimed at the Opposition parties as at those in Nagpur who may still discover their spine. The contest between the Modi establishment and the RSS is far from over; the RSS has a hundred years of institutional memory and learning, while Narendra Modi has in his toolkit all the agencies of the Union government.
Modi is probably not unaware that in the near future someone in Nagpur may want to remind him of his own ‘no-one-above-75-should-aspire for public office’ dictum. He will not yield to the wisdom or preference of the Sangh parivar on this ground. That is a larger battle and it will be become a critical clash if the RSS is able to impose its own name as BJP president. Watch out.
Harish Khare was editor of The Tribune.
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