It is impossible for anyone not to have noticed the frenzied self-flagellation among the saffronites. Now, self-flagellation, if it is sincere, can be moderately useful, especially if the party is trying to chart a winning future course. In the present case, the sudden discovery of what went wrong in the BJP, in general and in particular, seems very much like wisdom through hindsight. Even that delayed dawning would be welcome if the purpose was honest introspection. Unfortunately, the raging debate, which is destroying many precious trees and consuming hours of prime time, is clearly designed to achieve precisely the opposite. For Messrs Jaswant Singh, Arun Jaitley, Yashwant Sinha, Rajnath Singh, M.M. Joshi and others, including the ideologues and the powerful advising coterie (chiefly, Swapan Dasgupta and Sudheendra Kulkarni), it is an exercise in accountability-dodging. This exercise is one (small) part careerism and one (big) part protecting your backside. If anyone thinks that from this riot of name-calling and finger-pointing, India’s natural party of opposition will learn the appropriate lessons, think again.
Naturally, one would expect any political formation, after having suffered such a crushing defeat, to do some quick chintan with a degree of candour, but as we all know the BJP is a party with a "difference". Since the election campaign is still fresh in our memory, we need not travel to the archives to remind ourselves that all those individuals who are now absolutely and implacably certain that their party committed a series of huge tactical, strategic and ideological blunders, either enthusiastically supported these blunders or chose to silently endorse them. The latter became mute or "unavailable for comment". Mr Swapan Dasgupta, the most agreeable of the dissidents, claims "collegiate spirit" stopped him and others from speaking out when the BJP was in self-destruct mode. One may well ask: what kind of St Stephen’s College-type collegiate spirit inhibits passionate lifelong supporters from speaking up when the stakes are so high?
I am not dismissing the quality of the limited post-mortem performed by the resigners. Much of the diagnosis is sound as far as it goes. But why did they wait so long? Consider two examples of unpardonable reticence.
It is now agreed by all in the BJP that among the blunders, Varun Gandhi’s hate-filled speech was the top damager across the country. Yet, I know from personal experience (courtesy TV discussions) that when Varun made his vile remarks, senior leaders and spokespersons offered not a word of condemnation. Instead, they resorted to subterfuge. They quickly seized the detention of the budding poet under NSA as the issue rather than the filthy language he had used. Some tried verbal gymnastics: they simultaneously "associated" and "disassociated" with Mayawati’s "victim".
Meanwhile, Varun became a mini-hero for the parivar. There were votes to be gained in his vicious Muslim-bashing. Mr Rajnath Singh travelled to Pilibhit to pay obeisance. Except for two BJP Muslim leaders, the rest believed Varun’s philosophy could prove electorally useful.
Second. Mr L.K. Advani’s exertions to turn Decision 2009 into a presidential contest—strong leader versus weak leader who runs to 10, Janpath twice a day—was unanimously applauded in the party as a "masterstroke". It is no use admitting now that the BJP’s urban middle-class constituency was horrified at the vilification since they admired Manmohan: humble, soft-spoken, someone who kept their bank accounts safe, a person who could rub shoulders with world leaders and even advise them how to tackle the global economic crisis. This was the man BJP chose for its worst insults.
Again, when this howler was pointed out by "Congress chamchas" like me, we were reprimanded for not being able to see how superior their mazboot neta was compared to a man who, famously, was in office but not in power. I am not privy to what transpired in the BJP war-room and strategy sessions, but publicly Manmohan vs Advani was hailed as a sure ticket.
Mistakes in elections are commonplace. That is not the point. However, the duplicity conspicuous now to persuade the faithful and unfaithful that some leaders and spin doctors knew better is rank hypocrisy.
So, as the factional fires spread, we must remember this one blunt truth: in the sensational assassination of the BJP at the hustings, everyone, especially those presently most vocal, has blood on their hands.
