05-04-2006, 10:43 PM
His motto: âNever say dieâ
Obituary: Pramod Mahajan (1949-2006)
The death of the BJPâs master strategist and fundraiser, Pramod Mahajan, came at a time when the party, not in the best of health, desperately needed him. A thinker, tactician, an excellent orator regarded second only to former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, Pramod Mahajan was the BJPâs âultimate crisis managerâ. His networking cut across political lines. Mr Vajpayee had anointed him as the future face of the BJP by describing Mr L.K. Advani as âRamâ and Mahajan as âLakshmanâ. Dogged by controversy, Mahajan was also graceful in defeat.
While Mr L.K. Advani was the chief architect of the BJPâs failed âIndia Shiningâ and âFeel Goodâ campaigns, it was Mahajan who stepped forward to take full blame for the partyâs debacle in the last general elections. He would often say; âNo battle is lost till the last ship is sunk.â Asked once whether the partyâs debacle could mean the end of the road for him, he laughed and said, âIsnât there a movie called Never Say Die? Where is the question of dying at 54?â But Pramod Mahajan, 56, passed away at 4.10 pm in Mumbai on Wednesday of medical complications arising from being shot three times by his brother Pravin Mahajan.
The BJPâs success story at the national level started from Maharashtra when Pramod Mahajan struck a strategic alliance with the Shiv Sena in 1989, a masterstroke that felled the Congress in the state in 1995. From then on Mahajan dominated Maharashtra politics. Though the BJP was in power in States like Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat (in its Janata Party avatar), its march towards Delhi began from Mumbai when it realised that it could come to power only through a coalition, and not solely on its Hindu agenda.
He was perhaps the second saffron leader from Maharashtra, after Mr Nanaji Deshmukh, to be known for his organisational skills. Like his mentor Vajpayee, Mahajan too tried to build his political constituency outside the BJP. He later emerged as Mr Vajpayeeâs trouble-shooter. Born in 1949, the journey of this charismatic leader began from Ambejogai, in Beed district of Marathwada. It was the socio-political centre of this region.
The phenomenal growth of a son of a school teacher at the national level in a short span is appreciated even by his political rivals. Like other second-rung political leaders of various parties, like Madhavrao Scindia, Rajesh Pilot, R. Kumarmangalam and Jitendra Prasada, Mahajan also died in the middle of a very promising political career.
Obituary: Pramod Mahajan (1949-2006)
The death of the BJPâs master strategist and fundraiser, Pramod Mahajan, came at a time when the party, not in the best of health, desperately needed him. A thinker, tactician, an excellent orator regarded second only to former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, Pramod Mahajan was the BJPâs âultimate crisis managerâ. His networking cut across political lines. Mr Vajpayee had anointed him as the future face of the BJP by describing Mr L.K. Advani as âRamâ and Mahajan as âLakshmanâ. Dogged by controversy, Mahajan was also graceful in defeat.
While Mr L.K. Advani was the chief architect of the BJPâs failed âIndia Shiningâ and âFeel Goodâ campaigns, it was Mahajan who stepped forward to take full blame for the partyâs debacle in the last general elections. He would often say; âNo battle is lost till the last ship is sunk.â Asked once whether the partyâs debacle could mean the end of the road for him, he laughed and said, âIsnât there a movie called Never Say Die? Where is the question of dying at 54?â But Pramod Mahajan, 56, passed away at 4.10 pm in Mumbai on Wednesday of medical complications arising from being shot three times by his brother Pravin Mahajan.
The BJPâs success story at the national level started from Maharashtra when Pramod Mahajan struck a strategic alliance with the Shiv Sena in 1989, a masterstroke that felled the Congress in the state in 1995. From then on Mahajan dominated Maharashtra politics. Though the BJP was in power in States like Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat (in its Janata Party avatar), its march towards Delhi began from Mumbai when it realised that it could come to power only through a coalition, and not solely on its Hindu agenda.
He was perhaps the second saffron leader from Maharashtra, after Mr Nanaji Deshmukh, to be known for his organisational skills. Like his mentor Vajpayee, Mahajan too tried to build his political constituency outside the BJP. He later emerged as Mr Vajpayeeâs trouble-shooter. Born in 1949, the journey of this charismatic leader began from Ambejogai, in Beed district of Marathwada. It was the socio-political centre of this region.
The phenomenal growth of a son of a school teacher at the national level in a short span is appreciated even by his political rivals. Like other second-rung political leaders of various parties, like Madhavrao Scindia, Rajesh Pilot, R. Kumarmangalam and Jitendra Prasada, Mahajan also died in the middle of a very promising political career.