05-22-2009, 10:29 PM
Advani's follies<b>
Anti-Advani View
L K Advani: History to Oblivion Sandhya Jain - Vijayvaani</b>
16 May 2009 was a sad denouement for the BJP and its leader, Lal Kishan Advani, who metamorphosed from a possible prime minister to a person who could not bear to remain one moment in the glare of public discomfort. He departed in a grand sulk, refusing to face the party and the electorate of the nation he had hoped to lead till a few hours ago, owning no responsibility for the vacuous electoral strategy he crafted, which resulted in this finalé.
Mr. Advaniâs grief is understandable, but how could discerning Hindus vote for BJP given its utter disinterest in the Hindu people? Is Advani even concerned that Hindus will now face the depredations of a minority-pandering Sonia Gandhi?
This article seeks to throw light on some aspects of the Advani leadership that no one was willing to recognise through his long stewardship of the party, with results that are there for all to see. It is an attempt to detect what went wrong with Hindu societyâs most powerful upsurge â the Ram Janmabhoomi Movement â since the Cow Protection Movement in the late nineteenth century.
<b>
Alternate View
BharatRight Opinion</b>
The article written by fire-brand writer has criticised Advani for many of his so-called anti-Hindu/anti-India actions. We condemn such irresponsible criticism for a person, to whom BJP owes most its rise in Indian politics. The author and her ilk do not understand that the 'Hindu vote' she talks about does not exist. If BJP fights the next election on pure, undiluted, far-right Hindu nationalism, you can be rest assured of not crossing 80 LS seats. This is for the simple fact, as unpalatable as it may be, that vast overwhelming majority of Hindus do not vote as Hindus. They vote as their castes, they vote as their linguistic group. Many far-right activists give an example of Gujarat. They forget that Mr Modi has earned the support of his state for his 'Gujarati gaurav' not for 'Hindu gaurav'. If Mr. Modi had used the latter term, he would have lost the elections, because Hindus are too secular to vote as Hindus.
BJP has done well ONLY in those states where they provided good governance and fought unitedly. Invocation of Hindu pride did not give any additional benefit in UP and Orissa. Varun Gandhi may have won his seat handsomely, but, definitely contributed to BJP's loss in urban seats all over the country.
India needs BJP to weed out all extremists from the organisation and stress on governance, honesty & security. BJP needs to be right of centre, Indian - not Hindu - nationalist party. Allies such as Shiv Sena must be jettisoned as they fail on all the 3 parameters listed above.
Mr. Vajpayee and Mr. Advani have tried their best in last few decades to achieve that goal, but, constant pull to the right by shrill Hinduvadis has only hurt the cause of nationalism in this country.
Anti-Advani View
L K Advani: History to Oblivion Sandhya Jain - Vijayvaani</b>
16 May 2009 was a sad denouement for the BJP and its leader, Lal Kishan Advani, who metamorphosed from a possible prime minister to a person who could not bear to remain one moment in the glare of public discomfort. He departed in a grand sulk, refusing to face the party and the electorate of the nation he had hoped to lead till a few hours ago, owning no responsibility for the vacuous electoral strategy he crafted, which resulted in this finalé.
Mr. Advaniâs grief is understandable, but how could discerning Hindus vote for BJP given its utter disinterest in the Hindu people? Is Advani even concerned that Hindus will now face the depredations of a minority-pandering Sonia Gandhi?
This article seeks to throw light on some aspects of the Advani leadership that no one was willing to recognise through his long stewardship of the party, with results that are there for all to see. It is an attempt to detect what went wrong with Hindu societyâs most powerful upsurge â the Ram Janmabhoomi Movement â since the Cow Protection Movement in the late nineteenth century.
<b>
Alternate View
BharatRight Opinion</b>
The article written by fire-brand writer has criticised Advani for many of his so-called anti-Hindu/anti-India actions. We condemn such irresponsible criticism for a person, to whom BJP owes most its rise in Indian politics. The author and her ilk do not understand that the 'Hindu vote' she talks about does not exist. If BJP fights the next election on pure, undiluted, far-right Hindu nationalism, you can be rest assured of not crossing 80 LS seats. This is for the simple fact, as unpalatable as it may be, that vast overwhelming majority of Hindus do not vote as Hindus. They vote as their castes, they vote as their linguistic group. Many far-right activists give an example of Gujarat. They forget that Mr Modi has earned the support of his state for his 'Gujarati gaurav' not for 'Hindu gaurav'. If Mr. Modi had used the latter term, he would have lost the elections, because Hindus are too secular to vote as Hindus.
BJP has done well ONLY in those states where they provided good governance and fought unitedly. Invocation of Hindu pride did not give any additional benefit in UP and Orissa. Varun Gandhi may have won his seat handsomely, but, definitely contributed to BJP's loss in urban seats all over the country.
India needs BJP to weed out all extremists from the organisation and stress on governance, honesty & security. BJP needs to be right of centre, Indian - not Hindu - nationalist party. Allies such as Shiv Sena must be jettisoned as they fail on all the 3 parameters listed above.
Mr. Vajpayee and Mr. Advani have tried their best in last few decades to achieve that goal, but, constant pull to the right by shrill Hinduvadis has only hurt the cause of nationalism in this country.