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Journalism of Courage
For a state with a dominant Sikh majority and a strong Akali tradition, the BJP is now emerging with a new face. Realising it would never become a frontline party in the state unless it caters to the Sikhs, it’s now giving important positions to them.
One of the three BJP MLAs in Punjab, Sukhpal Singh Nannu is a Sikh. One of its two Rajya Sabha MPs, Gurcharan Kaur is a Sikh. She is also senior vice president of the party. One of the three general secretaries, Harjit Singh Grewal is also a Sikh. In fact, in recent days, Grewal is being increasingly presented as the Sikh face of the party.
Manjit Singh Rai, who was earlier president of the BJP youth wing in Punjab is now the press secretary of the BJP. Till recently, Sukhwant Singh Dhanaula was vice president of state unit, and is now heading the kisan morcha. Six of the BJP district presidents are Sikhs. The president of BJP NRI cell, Jagmeet Singh Chahal and its general secretary Rulda Singh are also Sikhs. The BJP ex-serviceman cell is full of Sikhs.
When L K Advani’s yatra entered Punjab, Grewal was made incharge of the Punjab leg. When the party was to appoint a new state president, Grewal was seen as a favourite. And now that a candidate for the Amritsar unit is being considered, it is again three Sikh candidates, former MP Daya Singh Sodhi, Grewal and Navjot Singh Sidhu who are being tipped for the seat.
The BJP has experimented with a Sikh state president earlier, when Daya Singh Sodhi was made the Punjab president. Sodhi found it difficult to carry along the rural Sikh populace, partly because he was not a Jat Sikh. This time, having learnt its lessons, the party is keen on a new Jat Sikh leadership.
To some extent, the lack of good performance of the BJP in Punjab has origins in its feeder cadre as well. In the 1980s, when Punjab was facing militancy, many state BJP leaders adopted an aggressive anti-Sikh position which reaped electoral dividends. The case of Punjab BJP leaders marching up to the Amritsar railway station and destroying the model of the Golden Temple in 1982 is an example of how the party behaved in those days.
With peace returning, and with an Akali-BJP alliance in place, it was difficult to maintain the same position. And as cleavage between Sikhs and Hindus in Punjab began receding, it was time for the BJP to redefine itself.
A major foray into Sikhism was made in 1999, when during the tercentenary celebrations of the Khalsa, the RSS embarked on an attempt to make serious inroads.
But the RSS attempt in 1999 also evoked an unprecedented reaction from the Sikhs. The attempt to install Guru Granth Sahib in Hindu temples evoked a strong reaction, and finally the RSS applied brakes on its pro active programme. A year later, the party line was slightly modified and the party began a slow process of coopting Sikhs.
In fact a story doing the BJP rounds narrates how a clean shaven person was asked to grow his beard and start tying a turban in case he wanted to make it big in Punjab BJP!
When Brij Lal Rinwa took over as BJP president three years ago, along with then general secretary Avinash Jaiswal, he took pains to ensure that the party caters to Sikh sentiments. The Sikh war cry of Bole So Nihal was adopted by the BJP. Gradually, all leaders took to speaking in Punjabi.
The tradition of Akalis catering to rural Sikh masses and the BJP concentrating on urban Hindus is also changing with Punjab cities itself undergoing a metamorphosis. Increasingly Sikhs from rural heartland are shifting to cities. The Akalis have now fielded a Hindu candidate, Naresh Gujral from Jalandhar. So with both Akalis and the BJP changing track, Punjab politics is in for a major change.
