The BJP unwittingly injected a new element in the Punjab election campaign today by announcing its decision to bring Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to canvass for party candidates.As leaders of the Shiromani Akali Dal(Badal) squirmed over this unforeseen development, party detractors lost no time in lapping up the issue. “We will organise demonstrations against Modi all over Punjab due to his role in the Gujarat violence,” Shiromani Akali Dal(Amritsar) president and former Lok Sabha MP Simranjit Singh Mann said.The Congress is expected to follow suit and raise many uncomfortable questions. The BJP has not disclosed details of Modi’s tour programme, but according to sources, he is likely to visit Punjab on February 4. He is slated to address public meetings in Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Amritsar, where most BJP quota seats are located.While conceding the BJP’s right to conduct its campaign the way it wants, sources in the Akali Dal admitted Modi’s presence would create an unnecessary controversy at a time when the going is good for the two allies. They said the Akali Dal has a certain position on minority rights and it does not want to be seen compromising on this.As it is, Dal chief Parkash Singh Badal has to strike a delicate balance—keeping his “panthic” vote among Sikhs intact while being aligned with the BJP. During the recent Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Managing Committee elections, detractors sought to embarrass him by putting out advertisements in newspapers showing him clad in trademark RSS khaki shorts. The move was intended to underline his proximity to the BJP-RSS leaders in the backdrop of Sikh reservations over Hindutva. Modi is still way beyond, symbolising a far more aggressive brand of Hindutva. The highlight of the Dal-BJP campaign would be a rally by former prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee. The rally has been scheduled for February 10 in Ludhiana. Former deputy prime minister L K Advani and BJP president Rajnath Singh have set aside three days each for the campaign. Murli Manohar Joshi, Venkaiah Naidu, Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley, Vasundhara Raje and Shivraj Singh Chouhan will also campaign in the state.
