End notes

It was a chronicle of a resignation foretold. BJP president L.K. Advani, battling party turbulence and personal attack, was widely expected ...

It was a chronicle of a resignation foretold. BJP president L.K. Advani, battling party turbulence and personal attack, was widely expected to announce plans for his resignation after the party8217;s plenary in December. What was possibly not anticipated was his incisive and relevant critique of RSS interference in BJP functioning. For the first time in the history of the BJP, a president has shown the courage to confront the Sangh parivar, reminding it that the BJP was ultimately accountable to the people; that while the party had to keep 8220;its basic ideological stances intact8221; it also had to 8220;expand itself to reach large sections of the people outside the layers of all ideology8221;. He argued for the value of party autonomy, which he saw as crucial, not just for the BJP, but for the RSS.

It is of course most unlikely that this pragmatic assessment of political compulsions will force the RSS and outfits like the VHP, which have no direct link to the democratic processes, to engage in introspection on their statements and stances. But it will be unfortunate if the BJP, as a party, does not acknowledge the importance of Advani8217;s words for its own future trajectory. For the BJP, the dilemma as always is this: should it choose to be a contemporary political party, in sync with modern day realities and priorities; or should it remain a mere appendage to the Sangh, faithful to a matrix designed by Nagpur?

It is difficult to predict the future. As Atal Bihari Vajpayee has just reminded us, kal kisne dekha hai? who has seen the future?. But as second-rung leaders jostle to emerge as guardians of the party in the next few months, this dilemma before the party can be expected to deepen. Pretenders to the party throne may find it useful to insinuate themselves to the RSS in a bid to power themselves forward. But while individuals may choose this option, the party will do well to be conscious of itself as a more autonomous unit, driven by the compulsions of political survival. If, as Advani said and is generally agreed, the BJP8217;s greatest achievement in the 25 years of its existence has been its emergence as one of the two principal poles in Indian politics, it would need to defend its legacy of being a party of governance.