By Shweta Desai
A rap on the knuckle or a stern warning against throwing caution to the wind ?
Whatever the interpretation be, the Bharatiya Janata Party has received an earful over its unexpected loss of majority in the Lok Sabha elections from the top brass of its parent organisation, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
The surprising defeat in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra–the two largest states where the BJP is in power- and decline of power in the southern states, has been like pulling the rug out from under its feet, after landing a thumping majority twice before. The BJP won 32 new seats but lost 92 incumbent seats in Rajasthan, Karnataka, Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Bihar, and yet again failed to infiltrate the fortress of Tamil Nadu. In the end, the overall tally of 240 out of 543 seats fell short of forming a majority government at the centre, making it dependent on the crutches of the coalition government. The bland performance and the bitter election campaign leading to slanderous remarks, false narratives and social divisions have rattled the Sangh leadership in Nagpur and it has made its displeasure known nationally.
In a televised speech at the gathering of newly trained RSS workers in Nagpur — on the day Prime Minister Narendra Modi took charge of his new cabinet — Sarsanghchalak (chief) Mohan Bhagwat, criticised the ruling and the opposition parties for the divisive poll campaign. His remarks, some of which were directed at the ruling BJP government, were followed by a scathing article in the Sangh’s unofficial mouthpiece, the Organiser, pointing out the overconfident BJP’s strategic mistakes. The combined message has caused mini explosions in the political circle and is being seen as a sign of discontent between the BJP and the Sangh.
This story was originally published in outlookindia.com. Read the full story here.
