L. K. Advani - The mouse that roars...off & on

Lal Krishna Advani represents the "old Hindustan", that was responsible for the stifling "Nehruvian Rate" (mistakenly called the Hindu Rate) of progress. Until the BJP came to power he was a mouse for the most part. The world has changed drastically. He is totally unqualified to lead Hindustan in the current economic and global environment. He doesn't appeal to youth of the country. Time to pass the mantle to a younger group of people who are more in touch and qualified to deal with the world’s economic environment.

Lal Krishna Advani was born in 1927. http://www.lkadvani.in/eng/content/view/341/256/.

He joined the RSS in 1942. Other than being involved in RSS activities, he makes no mention of any significant role in Hindustan's Independence movement. Most of his "formative political years" were spent in organizing and administrativ activities wherein he established himslef as a good party man. Through the Nehru years he was a party loyalist working his way first in the Bharatiya Jana Sangh (in 1958), which merged with the Janata Party (in 1975) and later became the Bhartiya Janata Party, founded in 1980.

He was elected to the Rajya Sabha in 1970 while with the Jana Sangha. He writes; "In my early speeches in the Rajya Sabha, I articulated my thoughts on some issues that I have subsequently raised in Parliament in one way or the other during the past decades. These were: how to strengthen the unity and integrity of the country; how to safeguard our democratic institutions and make them more effective; why the ruling party must learn to respect the voice of the Opposition; and how to make Centre-state relations smooth and harmonious." In other words, he warmed the bench in the Rajya Sabha and was a "talking head".

He became the BJP in President in 1986, and the hitherto "mouse" began to make some noises….occasionally. He rose to prominence with his Ratha Yatras and probably had something to do with the Babri Masjid demolition. While these allegations probably would not hold up in a court of law, it is hard to believe an RSS member not having any knowledge of an activity that was obviously pre-planned. Either that or he was woefully out of touch with the RSS or lying. Either way….clean bowled on one aspect or the other.

As the Home Minister during the Kandahar hijacking incident, the mouse ducked. He claims that he was not involved in some of the critical decisions taken. So he was not in charge or lying. Either way….clean bowled on one aspect or the other.

He criticized Dr. Manmohan Singh as being the weakest PM India has seen. Things got personal and ugly. Dr. Manmohan Singh was heading up a fragile coalition during his first tenure and has emerged victorious with UPA II. The mouse during the Kandahar episode was vanquished.

The BJP positioned the 2008 election as a choice between Advani and Dr. Manmohan Singh. The mouse roared and lost. The party found another scapegoat to sacrifice and the mouse sat still.

When Jaswant Singh was expelled, the mouse kept quite. No support for a learned and respected colleague! As a prominent member of the party, one has to take a stand either for or against the issue. One can’t sit on the sidelines with their tail between their legs. Either way….clean bowled.

Based on recent events, with the expulsion of Jaswant Singh and side lining of other "thinking" individuals, the BJP has demonstrated a complete lack of "Intellectual capacity" and is portraying itself as a dogmatic party that pays more importance to "Moral Policing" than ascribe to the values that Vajpayee promoted.

Advani is shackled by the BJP ideology (dogma) and its upholding of traditional values, one of them being; "Respect for Elders". Good value no doubt, but the elders should realize that their prime is past and ought to make way for the youth.

So long Advani, time to be the mouse that you are and fade away.

A Politically Incorrect Analysis

The BJP big wigs squatted in Shimla at their "Chintan Baitak" (Aug 19th-22nd, 2009) and agonized over their defeat in the Lok Sabha elections. What ought to have transpired.

Let's start at the top. Advani is a dinosaur. He doesn't appeal to youth of the country. He represents the "old India", that was responsible for the stifling "Nehruvian Rate" of progress. On the other hand, Dr. Manmohan Singh, with all his faults (no charisma, Mr. Mumble, robotic...) is genuine, has a brilliant mind that is honed for the current world economic dynamics and he has a gentle heart.

The BJP's Hindutva angle resonates wherever there is a significant Hindu-Muslim divide like in Gujarat and Karnataka. However, this does not appear to resonate at the National level. And so the BJP has relegated itself to more of a Regional Party with some National Presence. And the Congress has asserted itself as a National Party.

Looking back at the election rhetoric, the Congress harped on its secular credentials and that it has served the country well during its administration. Both are perceived as valid claims, even if its approach to secularism is to treat each religious group differently. And the fact is, the country has done well during the last five years and has weathered the economic downturn.

Rahul Gandhi played a very important role and really hit his stride. He energized the youth and a number of young Congress candidates featured in the news. The BJP on the other hand is shackled by its ideology (dogma) and its upholding of traditional values, one of them being; "Respect for Elders". Good value no doubt, but the elders should realize that their prime is past and ought to make way for the youth. The Congress has positioned Rahul as the successor to the Party Leadership. The BJP has announced no clear heir and the name Modi is mentioned. Another oldie!

The NREGA program is a big boon to the rural Uneducated, Unskilled and Unemployed. That sure must have brought in the Rural Vote. The BJP on the other hand harped on National Security and blowing smoke up the PM's behind, which back fired. It is one thing to take jibes at the PM at cocktail parties and informal gatherings. Things got personal and ugly.

Another factor that hurt the BJP is the emergence of Federalism: Coincident with this election is the establishment of Federalism and strong regional parties that are leading their respective State Governments and focused on their regional issues. Naveen Patnaik's dumping the BJP was a masterful stroke. This emergence of Fedralism represents a maturing of the people of the country. The States should wrest more power from the Center, with Members of Parliament focusing on National Issues like across the board consistency in commercial, legal and education policies, Defense, Foreign Policy, Fiscal/Monetary Policy etc. Right now Delhi grabs too much from the country and has taken the place of the British Crown. Getting funds is not a problem for Sheila Dixit. Efficient execution of programs is her challenge.

What remains to be seen is whether the UPA will work effectively with the non-UPA led states, like Bihar, Orissa, Gujarat, Karnataka etc. The "Duryodhana Complex" is endemic in India where one is not happy with what they have, they want what is not theirs, they are dissatisfied with their own success, and in order to look better, they will put down their opponents. Instead of running faster, and performing better, the focus is on coasting and bashing the opponents/competitors. The fact is that the States have power, they just need to assert it.

Interesting times ahead. Migration away from Vote Bank politics to Development: Rahul Gandhi in his infamous press conference cited Nitish Kumar (Bihar) and Naveen Patnaik (Orissa) as good examples of pro-development and secular leaders. We are a mini-Europe and we need to "devolve power" to the States. It is interesting to note, he could not cite (even if he wanted to) a single Congress Chief Minister that has done good for his/her State, with the exception of Sheila Dixit who leads a tiny "state". The reason cited by some, is that the Congress CM has to get approval from the "high command" on every decision he/she takes. Maharashtra for instance is cited as the worst performing Congress lead State. But the political mandate is clear. People want "Development" and "Jobs".

Based on recent events, with the expulsion of Jaswant Singh and side lining of other "thinking" individuals, the BJP has demonstrated a complete lack of "Intellectual capacity" and is portrating itself as a dogmatic party that pays more importance to "Moral Policing" than ascribe to the values that Vajpayee promoted.

जय हो,