Honeymoon’s over: Modi, RSS no longer on same page?

[prasad1]

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The BJP-RSS “all is well” relationship may after all be a façade amid growing murmurs of discontent. For one, RSS does not approve of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “autocratic” style of functioning, besides other issues on which it differs with the BJP. Yet, given the popular support that Modi enjoys, the Hindutva fountainhead has decided to “wait and watch”.


The RSS dropped enough hints in this regard when it replaced joint general secretary Suresh Soni as the pointsman between RSS and BJP with veteran Sangh leader, Krishna Gopal. It had expressed dissatisfaction with the working of Soni — considered as one of Modi’s close associates. Soni was instrumental in Modi’s selection as the BJP’s campaign chief and subsequently, the prime ministerial candidate before the 2014 general elections.


The Hindu outfit is also unhappy with the elevation of Amit Shah as it believes both the BJP president and the Prime Minister should not be from one state.


According to RSS insiders, the bone of contention has been the way Nitin Gadkari — its blue-eyed boy — has been kept out of key decision-making issues. Besides, the outfit also expressed its displeasure over senior RSS leader and former BJP organising secretary Sanjay Joshi being ignored for any role either in the party or in the government.


The RSS has said that its chief Mohan Bhagwat expressed his displeasure over functioning of the Modi government in a closed door meeting in Agra a few days ago.
“All these issues would be discussed in the proposed pratinidhi sabha to be held in March 2015,” a senior RSS pracharak on condition of anonymity said.
Senior RSS leaders were apparently also not happy with the government’s ‘weak’ defence of Bhagwat’s statement about all Indians being originally Hindus and that they should be called so.
In the Agra meeting, Bhagwat had said that the leader of the party in power (Modi) should have propagated this statement more effectively.


PM Modi, in return, tried to pacify Bhagwat by sending Shah to Nagpur a couple of months back and also to Lucknow last month. But so far BJP’s efforts to pacify the RSS have remained futile.
Honeymoon?s over: Modi, RSS no longer on same page? - Hindustan Times

 

[biswa]

That's cool. Most Indians care more for "Good governance" rather than Hindutva.

 

[renuka]

That's cool. Most Indians care more for "Good governance" rather than Hindutva.

agreed!

Any form of Tva is just extremism or Talibanism.

 

[Jaykay767]

Biggest fairy tale after Obama !! People will realizepainfully after another crash landing…

 

[krish44]

this govt will go down because of RSS and not Modi.

delhi a state where last communal flare up was in 1984 is in news again.

with state election around the corner, Sangh activists are following the UP model raising the communal pitch. trilokpuri is facing communal divide and there are

problems between two communities.bawana is next on the list.

when such things happen poor of both communities get hurt.

modi can ignore the sangh and concentrate on economy. if delhi elections have to be won ,it has to be only on modi rhetoric as BJP has no local leaders.

congress no chance. AAP is discredited because of infighting and middle class has moved away from it . delhi has no options

 

[sangom]

this govt will go down because of RSS and not Modi.

delhi a state where last communal flare up was in 1984 is in news again.

with state election around the corner, Sangh activists are following the UP model raising the communal pitch. trilokpuri is facing communal divide and there are

problems between two communities.bawana is next on the list.

when such things happen poor of both communities get hurt.

modi can ignore the sangh and concentrate on economy. if delhi elections have to be won ,it has to be only on modi rhetoric as BJP has no local leaders.

congress no chance. AAP is discredited because of infighting and middle class has moved away from it . delhi has no options

this govt will go down :—

This may happen, and if it does it will be as much due to Modi as it will be because of RSS.

modi can ignore the sangh :—

Much of Modi's 'aura' and electoral successes are due, primarily, to the grassroots level RSS work. Most BJP cadres are also RSS volunteers and it is like an axiom for them that their BJP affiliation is only a by-product of their RSS association.
Hence, alienating the RSS will prove costly for Modi & Co., until he succeeds in keeping ready a separate non-RSS BJP party cadre; and that is not an easy task.

In Gujarat, Modi was able to bring about some superficial developments thanks to the help of his big business friends, and partly because he is not personally corrupt. States like Kerala, Tamilnadu, etc., have also been able to make much progress in the welfare of their people. But because Modi's name was embroiled in the communal clashes, the RSS/BJP outfit worked overtime to trump up the 'gujarat model of development' and Rajnath Singh was so taken up by this self-created hype, that he anointed Modi as BJP's PM candidate. But Modi remembers only old Indian history; he forgets the help given to him by Advani, Rajnath, RSS, etc.

In such a scenario, it is very likely that the RSS/BJP machinery may not be very enthusiastic in future election successes and the Delhi results will therefore be very crucial.

Anyway, Shri Sarangji will definitely give us the "insider version" soon!

 

[krish44]

sangomji

the UP mode of electioneering is getting replicated in delhi . Due to moharram , all domestics are staying home to avoid getting caught in possible cross fire between

communities. We are hoping it will pass off peacefully. Police is out in full strength patrolling.

besides delhi assembly has got dissolved , so in election mode again

BJP has no leaders in delhi . so only Modi has to win it for them

let us see what happens.

 

[sarang]

"Don't get trapped in western definitions" Amit Shah. Think Indian

Media's wild and unsupported speculation can be put to rest by this interview with amit shah; see the confidence and pro indian mind set. from rediff

How is the relationship between the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh?
Very sweet (ekdum madhur). Since years the BJP and the RSS have been maintaining cordial relations and we continue having beautiful linkages even now.
As before, the RSS is a social-cultural organisation and is not in politics.
Among the public the perception has gone down, especially after the nomination of M L Khattar and Devendra Fadnavis as chief minister in Haryana and Maharashtra, that whoever is close to Modi at a personal level and who has old linkages with the RSS, will get plum postings.
What do you want to say about Shivraj Singh Chauhan and Vasundhara Raje? And if you talk about the latest developments of Fadnavis and Khattar, I would say that they are the most natural claimants to the post.
Modi is our top leader and he will be an inevitable part of such final decision-making processes. His influence will be there.
What is the essence of your question? Will decisions be taken in my party on the wishes of Sonia Gandhi, then? Naturally Modi, who is our undisputed leader, will be influencing our processes. What is the issue here?

Is the youth of India attracted only by Modi or is it endorsing the BJP’s philosophy as well?
Modi is marching forward on the basis of the BJP’s philosophy. Obviously, if they are attracted to Modi, they are attracted to his philosophy too.

But the proposed labour reforms affects the poor people…
Which aspect of the labour reforms? Why are you getting impatient?
Rs 22,000 crore of provident fund money is stuck because salaried people shifts jobs. If the government takes a decision about it, is it not in the interest of the working class?
When we talk of Make in India and implement a plan to provide jobs to crores of people, will it not help the workers? These actions are for the poor.
We helped the poor open bank accounts. Does it help the poor or not? They got Rs 1.30 lakh as insurance, is it not as case of helping the poor?
Our government is efficient and the poor will get their part of the subsidy in their bank accounts. We will work hard and we are confident about our performance.
We have got the mandate and we will get a stronger mandate the second time. This mandate has been not just from the middle class, but even from the tribals and the poor.

But basically are you pro-reforms?
Why do you want to remain trapped in words? For us all issues are different in nature.
I will ask you a question now. We didn’t sign the WTO’s Trade Facilitation Agreement. Was that decision anti-reform or pro-reform?
Anti-reform.
We deregularised diesel. What is it?
Pro-reform.
Now tell me, is the Modi government pro-reform or anti-reform?
It’s a debatable subject…
(Intervenes) We are pro-India. Don’t get trapped in Western definitions. There is nothing inflexible about pro-reform or anti-reform. Irrespective of economic theories we will take decisions in the larger interest of the poor people. I can give you five more examples to prove the point.
These pro-reform and anti-reform fixed definitions are mean. No government in any country can run on static definitions of economic thinking. The (last) government tried to run in an inflexible way, that’s why a mess was created.

There are some early signs to show that in some respects the National Democratic Alliance behaves like the United Progressive Alliance.
Like? Does our prime minister keep mum? Does our prime minister have a boss? Does our prime minister refuse to let the Indian Army fire at the border? Is our prime minister short-selling the rights of Indian farmers in the international market?
What is it that matches with the Congress government?
Is your government right-wing?
Define your definition of right-wing after reviewing all our decisions in 2019!

'Don’t get trapped in Western definitions. There is nothing inflexible about pro-reform or anti-reform. Irrespective of economic theories we will take decisions in the larger interest of the poor people'
‘Will decisions be taken in my party on the wishes of Sonia Gandhi, then? Naturally Modi, who is our undisputed leader, will be influencing our processes. What is the issue here?’

Exclusive! THE AMIT SHAH INTERVIEW 'We are pro-India' - Rediff.com India News

 

[sarang]

Will you hazard a guess for aap and kejriwal?

sangomji

the UP mode of electioneering is getting replicated in delhi . Due to moharram , all domestics are staying home to avoid getting caught in possible cross fire between

communities. We are hoping it will pass off peacefully. Police is out in full strength patrolling.

besides delhi assembly has got dissolved , so in election mode again

BJP has no leaders in delhi . so only Modi has to win it for them

let us see what happens.

 

[sangom]

Will you hazard a guess for aap and kejriwal?

Sarangji,

Though your query is addressed to Shri Krish, I wish to intervene (though I am only a very distant observer of Delhi politics) that AAP and Kejriwal have enough opportunities to become a "king-maker" party in Delhi - if not the major/largest party - if Kejriwal shows more political maturity and less of authoritarianism and fights the coming elections, without looking to photo-ops and media support, like the last time he did.

 

[sarang]

Some more direct answers; no beating about the bush from Amit Shah.

What are your efforts to bring Muslims closer to your party?
We are working towards bringing all the people of India closer to the BJP.
Amitbhai, this is a stock answer. Why don't you move forward?
You rise above your thinking. 'Hindu,' 'Mussalman' is the politics of the '50s. There is no politics of 'Hindu-Mussalman.' You get out of these theories. This country's journalists need to graduate to the new level on this issue.
Our understanding is that the minorities want security and a compassionate voice to represent their problems.
We are here since five months, are the minorities feeling insecure? We are there in Gujarat, MP and Rajasthan, and there are no issue among the minorities. There are no riots.
This is dust gathered in your brain. You are stuck in politics that was there at the time of Partition. You better get rid of it. Our nation has moved much forward.
My question was simple. When will Muslims come into the mainstream of BJP politics?
We will work hard to bring everybody into the mainstream of the BJP. These are not stock answers. The BJP never thinks on the basis of religion.
That is what your party has been thinking since its inception.
Not at all. If we would have been thinking that way then even out of fear of getting a bad name, we would have settled the controversy by giving tickets to Muslims. We give tickets to those who are able to win the elections.
The winnability of a candidate is the only criterion, and not his or her religion.
Where does the issue of Hindus and Muslims come into this process?

Exclusive! THE AMIT SHAH INTERVIEW 'There is no politics of Hindu-Mussalman' - Rediff.com India News

 

[sarang]

Indications are BJP will get a clear and comfortable majority and will form the govt. LG should have ordered reelctions long ago, when BJP refused to form a govt, aap formed and quit in a hurry when there was no need.

Sarangji,

Though your query is addressed to Shri Krish, I wish to intervene (though I am only a very distant observer of Delhi politics) that AAP and Kejriwal have enough opportunities to become a "king-maker" party in Delhi - if not the major/largest party - if Kejriwal shows more political maturity and less of authoritarianism and fights the coming elections, without looking to photo-ops and media support, like the last time he did.