Modi gets to keep his chair, at least for the time being

Vajpayee’s utterances on Gujarat — he said he favoured Modi’s removal after the riots but had to go with the tide — have been a blessing in disguise for Modi because the CPB reversed the earlier in-house stand that he should be removed given the widespread dissidence in Gujarat. BJP MLAs are peeved with his style of functioning.

But Vajpayee did make his point: he forced the party to discuss Gujarat even after Naidu announced that there would be no discussion on Gujarat at the national executive meeting in Mumbai from June 22.

But Vajpayee’s stand forced him to convene the CPB to discuss the issue.

There’s still scope for other Modi critics to rake up the issue at Mumbai because the national executive is slated to discuss recent polls and receive reports on the matter from states. Naidu, therefore, announced that the party had decided to name a committee to go into an in-depth study of election results. A brain-storming session (chintan baithak) will be called in July for a new orientation.

At the meeting today, it was decided to focus on the next round of Assembly polls — they are due in five states in quick succession — to revive the party fortunes. There was particular concerned over Maharashtra, the first to go to polls.

Sources said the party decision on Modi was also motivated by the current atmosphere in Maharashtra. Many leaders foresaw the Ishrat Jahan issue — the girl killed in the Gujarat encounter — leading to a polarisation of votes. In this situation, they felt that Modi could be used to consolidate Hindu votes.

While there’s no guarantee that the Modi issue will not haunt the national executive at Mumbai, the party leadership wants to shift the focus on future strategy. A thrust paper — ‘‘Tasks Ahead’’ — is being prepared to define new goals for the party. Naidu met RSS joint secretary Madan Das Devi after the CPB meeting to discuss the Mumbai agenda.