The Native Returns

Syed Shahnawaz Hussain, the BJP’s ubiquitous Muslim face, had last taken oath as a minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee ­government two decades ago. Now, the 52-year-old is back in the saddle, this time as a minister in the Nitish Kumar government. Two deputy CMs from his party are above him in the hierarchy. There were talks that he might be given the finance portfolio, given his experience at the Centre, but he ended up getting industry. Many consider it to be a demotion of sorts, but he doesn’t think so. “I am a soldier of the party, and will shoulder whatever responsibility the party gives me,” he says.

Hussain was sworn in along with 16 other ministers, including eight from the JD(U), on February 9, ending weeks of speculation. BJP insiders ­believe Hussain has been sent back to his home state for both short- and long-term gains. The party is ­apparently eyeing immediate gains in the upcoming West Bengal polls, where it is engaged in a bitter fight with the ruling Trinamool Congress. By making Hussain a ­minister in the adjoining state, the BJP hopes to make inroads in Bengal, with its ­sizeable population of minority voters. In the long-term, it aspires to win over the minorities in Bihar as well, especially in the Muslim-dominated belt of Seemanchal, where Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM made a forceful entry by winning five seats in the recent ­assembly polls.

Muslims account for about 17 per cent of Bihar’s electorate, but they are a dominant force in at least 20 ­constituencies. Until now, NDA has been getting a chunk of these votes primarily because of Nitish’s minority welfare policies. With Hussain’s ­induction, the BJP could also be ­sending out a message that the former Union minister, who has also ­represented Kishanganj in the Lok Sabha, may well be its next CM face. Political pundits believe he is the BJP’s best bet if it aspires to wrest the baton of NDA’s leadership from Nitish in 2025, if not earlier.

The BJP has reposed its trust in young leaders like Hussain, after ­having sidelined state party veterans such as Sushil Kumar Modi, Nand Kishore Yadav and Prem Kumar, who were all part of the Nitish ministry in all ­previous NDA governments. While Sushil has been sent to the Rajya Sabha, others have been left out in the cold.

The BJP could be seeking to reset its equations with Nitish, who has been calling the shots within the coalition for the past 15 years. The BJP won 31 more seats than JD(U)’s 43 in the November 2020 polls, but let Nitish take over the reins in keeping with its pre-poll promise. For the next polls, however, the BJP seems to have set its eyes on the CM’s chair.

Clearly, far from being the demotion that some are assuming it to be, Hussain’s ­return to Bihar has an ­unambiguous political message ­written all over.