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Journalism of Courage
With the BJP choosing to hold its national executive meeting at Indore, the battle for Madhya Pradesh has begun. A crucial round of assembly elections are due in November, not only in MP, but also in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Delhi, the results of which will undoubtedly have a fundamental bearing on the general elections of 2004. Although the Ayodhya issue was not discussed by BJP leaders at Indore, there was a great deal of emphasis on Hindutva. Unencumbered by allies in MP, the BJP is playing the Hindu card aggressively, and hoping to replicate the Gujarat model as seen in the agitations created around the Bhojshala issue and in the fielding of Uma Bharti as the chief ministerial candidate.
MP is crucial for both BJP and Congress for several reasons. As far as the Congress is concerned, this is the only state where Chief Minister Digvijay Singh, now probably the most powerful Congress satrap of all, has bucked the anti-incumbency trend and retained power for a decade. The fact that Singh is pulling out all the stops to remain in his seat is seen in the skillful, if gimmicky, manner he has sought to capture 8216;Hinduism8217; through the gauraksha statements; 8216;Dalits8217;, through the famous Bhopal Declaration of 2002 and even 8216;patriotism8217; through his flag hoisting campaigns.
