JULY 2- Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, also the BJP’s campaign committee chief, has stuck to his loyalists to populate the campaign panel he heads for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
The first meeting of the team, a mix of rabble-rousers and backroom boys, will be held on July 4.
The team comprises of Narendra Modi (chairman), Amit Shah, Varun Gandhi, Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Dharmendra Pradhan, Sudhanshu Mittal, Muralidhar Rao and Ram Lal.
Though the cold-shoulder to RSS representative Suresh Soni is surprising for many, BJP chief Rajnath Singh’s backing for Modi has led to Singh’s confidant Sudhanshu Mittal finding a place in the team.
Modi’s new team is also indicative of his electoral strategy. To find Modi’s pointsman Amit Shah in the list is a no-brainer. Despite being away from active politics, Shah has emerged stronger following his appointment as party general secretary. Barring former BJP chief Nitin Gadkari, no one has ever been given such a huge promotion but that was later attributed to proximity to the RSS.
Apart from Shah, BJP Pilibhit MP Varun Gandhi has so far remained an “aggressive” leader. At a time when Modi wants to be seen as a liberal leader, Varun’s visit to Terai and Purvanchal will only polarise votes against Muslims. Gandhi is also a long-term investment for Modi. With the party leadership in the state incapable of tackling Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati, they could do with a young leader who not only has family legacy, though a family derided by the BJP, but is also defiant.
The accommodation of Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi doesn’t need to be dwelt upon much more than to say the party has had only two Muslim faces after Sikander Bakht in the BJP – Naqvi and Shahnawaz Hussain.
The choice of Rajiv Pratap Rudy of Chhapra, Bihar could point to Modi testing a new man to stir the pot for the Janata Dal-United government of Nitish Kumar and its chances in the 2014 polls.
Dharmendra Pradhan, BJP leader from Odisha, used to handle the youth wing during a time when Modi was just another BJP foot-soldier. Pradhan’s anointment points to the camaraderie Modi shared with him and the possible payback for the old days.
Muralidhar Rao and Ram Lal have the RSS quota to thank. Rao has been the convener of the Swadeshi Jagran Manch and his name is counted amongst those interested in strategic shareholdings rather that getting involved in the hurly-burly of politics. Ram Lal has been in party work for years, but when compared to the ignored Suresh Soni, he poses no challenge to the Modi team.
