Don’t Take Kharge for Granted
Congress Party’s “elected president” Mallikarjun Kharge should not be taken for granted. Though Kharge was hand-picked by the Gandhis, he is slowly and gradually establishing his authority. The first sign of his authority came when general secretary Ajay Maken offered to resign as incharge of Rajasthan affairs. Without blinking even for a second, Kharge relieved him from the responsibilities. Kaken had said that he would devote his time to Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra. But Kharge did not utter a word on the issue. Maken is cooling his heels and looking for a role. Kharge also picked four advisers of his choice in his core team. If reports are to be believed, he also snubbed AICC’s Communications Department head Jairam Ramesh during the first meeting of the 47-member strong Steering Committee. The meeting was being presided over by Kharge when he saw Ramesh was constantly chattering and disturbing the deliberations. Kharge virtually scolded him, sending a clear signal that protocol has to be maintained. Sonia Gandhi looked towards Ramesh disapprovingly. Incidentally, Kharge and Jairam Ramesh hail from Karnataka but didn’t have any rapport.
CR Paatil, Emergence of a New Star
The BJP has seen the emergence of a new star on the horizon in the Gujarat Assembly elections. The BJP win in the state was a foregone conclusion and it was widely believed that Modi-Shah team will cross the 130 seats mark in a house of 182. But the outcome shocked all pollsters as the BJP touched an unprecedented figure of 156. Not many outside Gujarat understood the importance of the man who played a key role in planning the BJP’s historic win. When Paatil was first appointed as Gujarat BJP Chief in July 2020, eyebrows were raised as to why Modi picked a person who hailed from Maharashtra. But those close to Modi knew that Paatil is a silent warrior. He was incharge of Modi’s Varanasi Lok Sabha constituency in 2014 and in 2019 LS polls as well.
When Paatil was given the Gujarat responsibility, he wanted to set the target of winning all 182 seats. His argument was that if the BJP can win all 26 Lok Sabha seats from the state, why can't the party win all 182 seats. But this catchy slogan was dropped after deliberations and BJP kept talking about crossing the 149 seats mark won by Madhav Sinh Solanki. It transpires that Modi gave Paatil a free hand to select candidates and evolve a new strategy. It was Paatil’s proposal to change the entire Cabinet including the Chief Minister Vijay Rupani in September 2021. Paatil also introduced new strategies at booth and even street level in every village. Paatil’s model will be replicated in Gujarat and other poll bound states in 2023. He also brought in new saffron caps party leaders sported during the campaign. Modi also ensured that Paatil will address the media after the big Gujarat win and announce that Bhupendra Patel will be the next Chief Minister of the state. It’s a signal that Paatil is the new hero emerging in the BJP. While many in the BJP say that he will be inducted into the Union Cabinet but others say that he may be given a bigger role in the organization as Modi is looking to cross the 400 Lok Sabha seats mark.
Why Chouhan should be worried
The big Gujarat win notwithstanding, it’s the defeat in Himachal Pradesh and Delhi MCD polls that has made the BJP leadership worried. The heads have started rolling in the BJP immediately after defeat in two states indicates that mere hype won’t work in nine states that will go to polls in 2023. The BJP also nipped in the bud any talk of encouraging defections in Delhi or Himachal Pradesh to overturn popular mandate. The defeat of BJP in Himachal does not augur well for Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Reports emanating from BJP headquarters suggest that had the party sacked Jairam Thakur along with some of the ministers, the result could have been different. Such an experiment paid rich dividends including Gujarat. The BJP leadership has been toying with the idea of removing Chouhan and bringing a new face to overcome anti-incumbency against him.
Vasundhara is sitting pretty
Former Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhararaje Scindia has reasons to be happy with the outcome of Himachal Assembly polls. It is for the first time the BJP leadership faced a major rebellion in a state and ensured the party's defeat. The BJP leadership is keen to anoint Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Shekhawat as Chief Minister and not Scindia in Rajasthan in the event of the party winning the polls. But Himachal’s defeat has made the leadership worried about the rebel factor in the desert state. In Himachal, the PM went to the extent of personally ringing up a rebel to make him withdraw. But he declined and went on to even leak the conversation as well.
