Tough times ahead for Vajpayee as hardliner takes over RSS

NAGPUR/NEW DELHI, MARCH 10: The Atal Behari Vajpayee Government will have to do a tightrope walk with nomination of a pro-Swadeshi enginee...

NAGPUR/NEW DELHI, MARCH 10: The Atal Behari Vajpayee Government will have to do a tightrope walk with nomination of a pro-Swadeshi engineer, K S Sudarshan, as Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh Sarsanghchalak (chief) of at its triennial convention at Nagpur today.

With BJP’s allies like Telugu Desam Party having forced the party to make its Government in Gujarat to withdraw the circular allowing its employees to join RSS activities, the Government is likely to have a tough time in doing a balancing act between the allies and the Sangh.

Sudarshan has had open differences with the BJP-led Government over several issues like economic liberalisation, Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) Bill, posting of certain bureaucrats at key position and conversion.

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His latest spat with Vajpayee was at a RSS function last month where Sudarshan advocated that Hindi be made national language, a demand the Prime Minister rejected outright. “We cannot ask a non-Hindi speaking person to leave the country,” Vajpayee had said.

BJP leaders are worried since the entire Sangh top brass is likely to be replaced by a younger leadership. With Sarkaryavah (general secretary) H V Sheshadri too unwilling to continue due to failing health, the mantle is likely to fall on Madan Das Devi, sah-sarkaryavah (joint secretary). Chief of physical training cell Mohan Bhagwat and chief of ideological cell, Ranga Hari are likely to fill the two vacancies of sah-sarkaryavah created due to elevation of Madan Das and Sudarshan.

Vajpayee is, therefore, expected to fall back on the outgoing RSS chief Rajendra Singh alias Rajju Bhaiya, for mending fences with Sudarshan. Rajju Bhaiya used to moderate between hardliners like Sudarshan and moderates like Vajpayee during a confrontation between the two.

Rajju Bhaiya had issued a clarification after the Vajpayee-Sudarshan spat on the language issue. His another statement early this week that RSS did not need Government patronnage, led the Gujrat Government withdraw its controversial circular.

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First challenge the Prime Minister is likely to face from Sadarshan who has a pro-farmer image, is in making the Government rollback the recent hike in fertiliser prices, a demand raised by BJP’s allies as well.

Senior BJP leaders are awaiting with bated breath Sudarshan’s response on President Bill Clinton’s India visit, India’s agreement on WTO regulations and Union budget presented by Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha recently.

Vajpayee’s terse response after 12-day long Parliamentary impasse on the Gujarat Government’s circular, would be a test case for Sudarshan who like the BJP president Kushabhau Thakre, might like to go soft on Prime Minister. Any other response was likely to put the Sangh on confrontation course with the Government.

BJP’s allies are already wary of Sangh’s intentions. “We are committed to support the Government so long as it sticks to the National Agenda for Governance. We will not tolerate any deviation from the Agenda,” TDP Parliamentary Party chief Yerran Naidu told The Indian Express today.