The BJP lost Delhi by a landslide but it is essentially a city-state. The tragedy for the BJP was compounded by Mr Modi’s role as the chief campaigner. An expected reshuffle of his Cabinet cannot work wonders. How much further will the RSS lead Mr Modi by the nose It is, in a sense, a blessing that Bihar has come rather early during Mr Modi’s five-year term at the Centre.The BJP’s tactic of polarising voters on communal and caste lines, successfully tried in previous Assembly elections, failed in Bihar despite the Prime Minister’s own hectic campaigning because of three main factors. And his efforts to resort to the familiar communal card backfired.The kind of defeat suffered by the BJP-led combine in Bihar has portentous consequences for Mr Modi and the country. Even before a blatant cow advertisement made its appearance on the front pages of major local Hindi newspapers later to be objected to by the Election Commission, BJP president Amit Shah, who had parked himself in Bihar for weeks, made the ultimate communal pitch by declaring that they would fire crackers in Pakistan if the BJP were to lose in Bihar. And much play was made of the evils of beef eating. First, he tried to surmount the embarrassment caused by his mentor, chief of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, seeking a review of caste reservations in a caste-based polity by suggesting that it was Mr Kumar’s coalition that wanted to take away a percentage of reservations to give to Muslims.com. Significantly, a party functionary spoke on the Bihar defeat and took pains to make the point that it would not dent Mr Modi’s image. But these worthies retain their offices and Mr Modi does not follow the simple expedient of contradicting his men in public or sacking them. The stark difference is that the nation is not Gujarat and given the RSS contribution to his national victory, it is demanding its pound of flesh. The defeat for the ruling party at the Centre is all the more bitter because Prime Minister Narendra Modi was his party’s main campaigner and had pitted himself against the chief minister, as has been his wont in a succession of state elections, contrary to convention. Bihar is a different matter altogether because it is a barometer state in the Hindi heartland and represents a big setback in a succession of the Prime Minister’s victories. Remarkably, no one in the state had a bad word to say about Mr Kumar.
Can he break free from his chains The writer can be contacted at snihalsingh@gmail.The thumping victory of the Janata Dal (United) and the Rashtriya Janata Dal of Mr Yadav was a fitting answer indicating the Bihar voters’ sagacity and ability to read the essence of the communal message. Both he and the country can assess the results of the style and content of his rule. The “Modi wave” that gave him a spectacular election victory in last year’s general election and took his party past the victory famous aluminum platform ladder manufacturers post in subsequent state elections bar Delhi has waned.It is a famous victory in Bihar for two regional leaders, Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad Yadav, even as the over-confident Bharatiya Janata Party licks its wounds on its rout at the hands of the coaliti It is a famous victory in Bihar for two regional leaders, Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad Yadav, even as the over-confident Bharatiya Janata Party licks its wounds on its rout at the hands of the coalition. How long can he and his party continue to pursue the path of Hindutva in a multi-ethnic and multi-religious country With a population of more than 172 million Muslims and other important minorities, parsing the polity along religious lines is a divisive exercise. Mr Modi has already surrendered two areas — education and culture — to the mercies of the RSS with the disastrous results we are witnessing each day. Indeed, Mr Shah’s pitch on Pakistan seemed a sign of desperation. Rather, there was praise for what he had done for his people and for development in his stints as chief minister.Besides, the number of outrageous statements BJP leaders, including members of Parliament and Mr Modi’s ministers, are continuing to make unchallenged by the party leadership grows each day.
