By Ram Puniyani
The parliamentary elections of 2024 gave disappointing results for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Its strength in Lok Sabha came down from 303 to 240. Thereby the formal National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government had to become the NDA government. The alliance partners who had no say during the last ten years can now possibly have their voice heard. This may reduce the dominance of the BJP’s Hindu nationalist agenda. To cap it all, the increased strength of the INDIA coalition and increasing popular support for Rahul Gandhi led to the Opposition becoming more assertive and forceful.
In these elections it seems probable that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) had not come forward to aid its political progeny — the BJP. That does not mean the RSS wanted the BJP to be defeated, it was just aimed to subtly reprimand the rising ‘non-biological’ syndrome, to deflate his rising dominance. Still the RSS is in the driving seat or is the back seat driver in the real sense. Already RSS leaders are having long meetings with BJP leaders to analyse results of elections and to chart out future strategy.
In Uttar Pradesh, the RSS delegation was led by Sah Sarkaryavah (joint general secretary) Arun Kumar, who has been pioneering the coordination between the two organisations, Live Hindustan reported. RSS’s Ram Madhav has taken charge of Jammu and Kashmir elections.
At a deeper level the understanding of the RSS is that the major reason for the BJP’s decline in this election has been due to the shifting of Dalit vote towards INDIA coalition. To tackle this, the VHP is being activated, which will be having a series of meetings in Dalit bastis, co-dine with them and organise religious programmes to lure them. The VHP saints and sadhus will be undertaking this. The Hindu reports, “These religious leaders will undertake padyatra [foot march] in the designated areas, organise satsangs, Dharm Sansads [spiritual gatherings], visit homes of people hailing from the communities, and eat at their houses. This programme will be undertaken in the 9000 sub division of the VHP.”
In a way it also reminds us of the Ram Temple movement, where the VHP played the foundational role and then the BJP took over. The RSS not only trains the drivers (pracharaks, swayamsevaks) but is doing the back seat driving also. The 2024 parliament election results have shaken it and it is planning to go full steam to win back the shifting vote bank. The response of the RSS to these election results yet again shows that its claim of being a cultural organisation is a mere façade.
This story was originally published in thewire.in. Read the full story here.
