by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group
“Old is Gold” in BJP, once again
Harish Gupta
New Delhi, Nov. 2
After dumping party veterans to fend for themselves or dispatching some of them as governors, there is a sudden re-think in the BJP towards the 75 years old leaders. In a complete U-turn, the BJP announced Prem Kumar Dhumal as its Chief Ministerial face in Himachal Pradesh virtually at the fag end of the campaigning when he is set to turn 74 years shortly. As if this was not enough, the BJP president, Amit Shah, discarded the age-bar principle in Karnataka as well when he flagged off the “Nav Karnataka Parivarthana Yatra” today with B S Yedurappa. Interestingly, Yedurappa will turn 75 years January next and the Assembly polls will be held in May 2018. Yadurappa has been entrusted with the task of taking the state-wide padyatra. The 3-month long padyatra will be concluded by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. But Yedi's elevation as party's face is a clear indication that the old leader is back in favour and lead the party from the front.
The elevation of these two veteran leaders as chief ministerial face in their respective states is a complete reversal of declared policy of Prime Minister Modi and BJP leadership. Only recently, the leadership sent packing Gujrat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel once she turned 75 years old. Though she was virtually having a running battle with Amit Shah. But she survived as Modi was lending his support to her. However, the day she turned 75, the age-bar clause set in and she quit. Rather, she chose to write an open letter to Shah saying that she is quitting as she has turned 75 years.
But the age-bar rule is passe now with the announcement of Dhumal as BJP's CM face and B S Yedurappa in toe in Karnataka. The development has raised hopes of a large number of party veterans who are sitting members of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha as they have been forced to cool their heels. Veterans like L K Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi, have been inducted into the Margdarshak Mandal of the party which has not even met once in past 42 months of NDA-II rule. Dr Joshi told Lokmat that not a single meeting of the Mandal has been held. There are at least 12 sitting Mps who are above 75 years of age in the party and they all had played a key role in building the party from the scratch. They have not been given any work in the party either if it was decided that they won't be inducted as ministers. So much so that some of the sitting ministers of the union government were made to resign which included Najma Heptulla and Kalraj Mishra. But the rule has been broken as there is a re-think on this score in the party. It is found that the rule cannot work in a democratic set up unless workers and leaders are geared up to accept it. Yashwant Sinha's tirade against the leadership that “we all have been declared brain dead” had played some role in the re-think.
A senior Rajya Sabha member of the BJP who is over 75 years, said, “The party must find out some alternative mechanism how to utilize the services 75 years old leaders as they have done only party work throughout their life. They do not know anything.”
It seems that all 75 years leaders won't be treated with the same yardstick in the party henceforth. The “Old is gold” now.
Ends
