Thesis, antithesis, synthesis

8220;Jai Shri Ram,8221; said Old BJP, looking up from a copy of Panchajanya,8220;You have, no doubt, come to learn more about our party.8221;

Ah,8221; I said, 8220;You are Old BJP, aren8217;t you?8221;

8220;Namaskar,8221; said New BJP, putting down a glossy English weekly, 8220;You are, no doubt, looking for a copy of our National Agenda.8221;

8220;Ah,8221; I said, 8220;You are New BJP, aren8217;t you?8221;

8220;Hindutva, that8217;s our guiding force,8221; explained Old BJP emphatically.

8220;Ah, this is Old BJP speaking, isn8217;t it?8221; Iasked.

8220;Hindutva is nothing but Bharatiyata an ancient Indian tradition,8221; smiled New BJP.

8220;Ah, that is the voice of New BJP, isn8217;t it?8221; I asked.

8220;Hindi, Hindu, Hindustan. One nation, one people, one culture,8221; spat out Old BJP. 8220;Ah, no doubt you are Old BJP,8221; I said.

8220;We don8217;t define Hindutva in narrow exclusivist terms. We recognise that ours is a culture made of many elements,8221; said New BJP.

8220;If I am not mistaken, that is New BJP, isn8217;t it?8221; I ventured a guess.

8220;Cultural nationalism constitutes the identity of this party,8221; said Old BJP, thumping the table lightly.

8220;Do I hear the voice of Old BJP?8221; I asked.

8220;Cultural nationalism we categorise within the larger perspective of integral humanism,8221; smiled New BJP .

8220;That8217;s certainly the voice of New BJP,8221; I concluded.

8220;It8217;s our ideological issues that have made this party different from all other,8221; said Old BJP, thumping the table heavily.

8220;Ah, undoubtedly Old BJP,8221; I thought.

8220;Ideological issues can take thisparty this far and no further, our emphasis will be on governance,8221; said New BJP, sweetly.

8220;Ah, New BJP, is that you?8221; I asked.

8220;The election results have totally vindicated our ideological stand it8217;s a vote for Hindutva,8221; said Old BJP, clutching at the air.

8220;Ah, that8217;s Old BJP, I presume?8221; I asked.

8220;The election results have totally vindicated the politics of consensus,8221; New BJP pointed out with reasonable sweetness.

8220;Ah, without doubt, it8217;s New BJP speaking,8221; I said.

8220;We will not budge an inch from our earlier commitments, especially on Ram mandir,8221; said Old BJP, punching the air.

8220;Ah, clearly, the voice of Old BJP isn8217;t it?8221; I asked.

8220;Compromise is the essence of coalition politics and we will concentrate on building a Rashtra Mandir,8221; said New BJP, beaming beatifically.

8220;Ah, that8217;s clearly New BJP speaking,8221; I said.

8220;We will immediately move a Bill for legislation on the mandir issue and end the decade-old controversy as quickly as possible, mark my words,8221; saidOld BJ fervently.

8220;Ah, this is pure Old BJP-speak,8221; I observed.

8220;We would prefer a dialogue with all communities to resolve the issue,8221; said New BJP.

8220;Ah, this is pure New BJP-speak,8221; I observed.

8220;We will defeat the designs of the pseudo-secularists,8221; said Old BJP, raising a right hand.

8220;We will defeat the designs of the pseudo-secularists,8221; said New BJP firmly.

8220;We will build up the motherland and revive nationalist fervour so that India is fully prepared to meet the challenges of the 21st century,8221; said Old BJP, clawing at the air.

8220;We will build up the motherland and revive nationalist fervour so that India is fully prepared to meet the challenges of the 21st century,8221; said New BJP, looking serious.

8220;We will make the new millennium the Indian Millennium,8221; said Old BJP, bringing his fist down on the table.

8220;We will make the new millennium the Indian Millennium,8221; said New BJP, looking with pride into the distance.

8220;Hey,8221; I said, 8220;Hold on a minute. Now both of you arespeaking the same language. Will the real BJP stand up, please?8221;

At this, both BJPs were on their feet.

8220;Namaskar,8221; said New BJP.

8220;Jai Shri Ram,8221; said Old BJP.