PM’s pressure on Gujarat helped RSS hawks

Singh had agreed to nominate his successor after a year, sources in the RSS claim. But once the Government began building up pressure on Keshubhai Patel to withdraw the controversial circular, Rajju Bhaiya had to bow before the overwhelming demand for a harder stance vis-a-vis the Government, at the Pratinidhi Sabha comprising state-level leaders of the RSS and its affiliates.

Vajpayee doesn’t have good relations with Singh’s successor, K S Sudarshan, known to be a hardliner. The two have publicly differed on a number of issues like economic policies, whether India should be a Hindu Rashtra, handling of the recent Indian Airlines hijack and the issue of national language.

Citing the 1980 incident when the then Jan Sangh’s leaders had decided to leave the Government on the issue of dual membership, a number of senior Sangh leaders described the Gujarat incident as a matter of shame for the BJP. If the BJP imposed curbs on the Sangh, how was it any different from other parties like the Congress, they argued at the conclave.

The Prime Minister’s apprehensions came true when Sudarshan went straight off the mark by demanding that the country’s Constitution be rewritten. His demand that the Prime Minister should include people with a swadeshi outlook in his economic advisory council is unlikely to be accepted by a pro-liberalisation Vajpayee.

The new RSS chief is said to hold the view that Vajpayee’s economic liberalisation drive had gone much beyond the requirements of the WTO agreements. An impression has gained ground in the Sangh that the Prime Minister was moving much ahead of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) agenda to please the allies, even at the cost of the interests of the BJP and the RSS, sources claimed.

Hence, the Pratinidhi Sabha called for having a younger leadership with a stringent outlook on contentious issues. The rest was a smooth affair.

Rajju Bhaiyya sought to nominate his deputy, H V Sheshadri, as his successor which the latter declined citing his poor health as an excuse. This paved the way for Sudarshan’s elevation to the top post. Sheshadri then himself nominated Mohan Bhagwat as his successor. “The RSS is the only organisation where leaders themselves pave the way for a younger leadership”, claimed a senior RSS functionary.

Significantly, just two days after Sudarshan took over, Vishwa Hindu Parishad general secretary Ashok Singhal issued a statement saying that the temple construction at Ayodhya would start after four months. The stage is thus being set for an open confrontation with the Government.