Fly on the Wall
Suspense over Baramati continues
With the BJP high command determined to increase its seat and vote tally in the 2024- Lok Sabha polls, it is asking its allies in states to put their best foot forward. As part of this strategy, it is prodding its key ally NCP led by Ajit Pawar in Maharashtra to snatch all the four seats; Baramati, Satara, Shirur and Raigarh, that the NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) held in 2019 LS polls.
Sharad Pawar had pitched his daughter Supriya Sule from his traditional Baramati Lok Sabha seat to send a clear message that she will be his heir apparent. But the situation took a dramatic turn when Ajit Pawar staged a coup and walked away with the majority of MLAs. He joined hands with the BJP to dislodge the MVA government with more than 40 MLAs. Reports emanating from BJP headquarters in Delhi say that Ajit Pawar is being prodded to field his wife from Baramati Lok Sabha against Supriya Sule. This is despite the fact that PM Modi and Pawar have a personal chemistry running over many decades. But times have changed and if insiders are to be believed, the BJP is drawing a strategy to win all six Rajya Sabha seats in the biennial polls due this month. The NDA can manage to win five seats but there are many strategists who claim that the NDA can win six seats if remaining MLAs in the Opposition kitty play ball with the BJP. The Congress has 41 MLAs in a House of 288 and neither the NCP (Pawar) and now Sena (Uddhav) can win a seat on their own. There are reports that senior Pawar may invoke sympathy factor in Baramati saying this will be his last election of his life. Will it work or not can only be tested in May only.
A trust with No Trust
The great “Paltu Ram” of Indian politics has broken all past records of “Aaya Rams & Gaya Rams” that were witnessed in Haryana almost 45 years ago. When the mediators were brokering a peace deal again between the Bihar Chief Minister, Nitish Kumar and the BJP leadership for an alliance once again, there was a hitch. Nitish Kumar wanted a fresh letter of appointment from the Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar immediately after he tendered his resignation from the post of Chief Minister. He wanted his resignation to be accepted immediately and the BJP should simultaneously submit its letter of support to him to the Governor then & there. He also wanted the Governor to hand him over a fresh letter of appointment then & there. Nitish also insisted that the swearing-in-ceremony be held the same day. It was a piquant situation for the BJP as its MLAs had not held any meeting to lend their support to Nitish Kumar so that the party could hand over a letter of support to Nitish Kumar to the Governor. Nitish Kumar, by nature is very suspicious in nature and insisted that agreement can be reached if conditions are met. The BJP agreed to all the conditions with a proviso that Lok Sabha seat sharing deal will be on merit and not on the basis of 2019 outcome. It was only after these tricky behind-the-scenes deals the BJP could return to power sharing deal with Nitish Kumar. Interestingly, Nitish Kumar has also been appointed as the head of the NDA in Bihar.
Why Bharat Ratna to LK Advani?
Ever since the Modi government gave Padma Vibhushan to Samajwadi leader late Mulayam Singh Yadav in 2023, the RSS and die-hard BJP workers were upset. After all, it was Mulayam Singh Yadav's government in UP that opened fire on Ram Bhakts in Ayodhya on October 30, 1990 after a clash erupted between the karsevaks and the police. The organisers -- the VHP, the RSS and the BJP - wanted a Ram temple at the site of Babri Masjid but it was not yet clear what the karsevaks would do to the mosque. Therefore, the Sangh Parivar was sulking without saying anything about the award to Yadav. It may be recalled that in 2003, RSS ideologue Dattopant Thengadi rejected the Padma Bhushan award until K. B. Hedgewar (RSS founder) and M. S. Golwalkar (RSS ideologue) are offered the Bharat Ratna. The award to Thengri was given by the Vajpayee government. The RSS has been maintaining studied silence on these awards for decades. Therefore, when the Modi government gave Bharat Ratna to Advaniji, it did not offer any comment. But the common BJP worker is extremely elated as Advani is considered a noble man who built the BJP from two Lok Sabha seats to 182 and brought it to power through the Ram movement. Lately, the Modi government has been rewarding party workers and appointment of three chief ministers in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh is an indication of this new thinking.
Modi 370 target rattles allies
The other day, Prime Minister Modi declared in the Lok Sabha that the BJP will win 370 seats and the NDA will cross the 400-seats mark. In order to achieve the target, the BJP is now squeezing its allies in Maharashtra, Bihar and elsewhere to get more seats to contest. For example, it wants Nitish Kumar to contest 10-12 seats only instead of 17. The BJP had conceded its own five seats to Nitish Kumar in 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Now it wants these back in the 2024 polls. Similarly, the BJP wants to contest at least 30 plus seats. In 2019, the BJP contested 25 seats in alliance with the united Shiv Sena. It has been indicating to NCP led by Ajit Pawar and Sena (Shinde) to contest only those seats where it can win. The last word on these tricky issues is yet to be written.
