New Delhi, April 13: The Congress today questioned the Janata Dal (United)’s stand of distinguishing between Narendra Modi and other BJP leaders, breaking with its usual practice of playing up Nitish Kumar’s opposition to his Gujarat counterpart.
“There is not much difference between L.K. Advani and Modi,” Congress spokesperson Rashid Alvi said.
He expressed surprise at JD(U) leaders’ opposition to Modi’s possible elevation as prime ministerial candidate after they had wholeheartedly backed Advani for the top post in 2009.
Many Congress leaders have privately been questioning what they see as a JD(U) ploy of selectively targeting Modi to claim the secular space. Today, the party officially articulated its scepticism.
Congress leaders would not admit that the change in stance was prompted by today’s JD(U) attack on the party over the 1984 Sikh killings and the tangible signals that a Nitish-BJP divorce might not be imminent.
They argued that the Congress had always viewed the entire BJP as a communal organisation and harboured no illusions about Advani’s secular credentials.
Many in the Congress had been opposed to the party’s soft line on Nitish. “We can only laugh at the short-sightedness of our central leaders who dreamt of a BJP-JD(U) split,” a Bihar Congress leader told The Telegraph from Patna. “It’s a pity that they fell for this deceptive politics.”
He asked how the JD(U) could attack the Congress for 1984 while “viewing the BJP, except for Modi, as secular”.
Even those in the Congress who suspect the JD(U) would eventually dump the BJP are convinced that it will not align itself with the Congress.
They want the party leadership to launch a full-scale offensive against the Nitish government even if the Congress decides not to join hands with Lalu Prasad. Else, they fear, the party will find itself falling between two stools.
Sources said Rahul Gandhi understood the issue and was expected to give priority to Bihar during his upcoming interactions with state leaders that will follow an April 16 meeting of Delhi Congress leaders.
The Bihar Congress expects Rahul to present a clear roadmap to end confusion and paralysis in a state that sends 40 members to the Lok Sabha.
Those happy at Alvi’s remarks today say a strong message needs to be sent to Bihar’s Muslims that the JD(U) would be a key factor in the making of any BJP Prime Minister.
“It’s ironical that Nitish willingly supported Advani for the Prime Minister’s post, forgetting that he was the architect of the Ayodhya movement that led to the Babri demolition, and is now making a show of his opposition to Modi,” a senior Congress leader said.
“We know that Advani has been Modi’s mentor and has often described him as the best ever chief minister.”
If the Congress has to build on this line of thinking, it will need to end the ambiguity created by the reluctance of its central leadership to openly attack the Nitish government.
Many in the Congress feel the party cannot wait too long to see if the JD(U) would indeed split from the BJP before it reworks its Bihar strategy. It’s already too late, they say, to rebuild the organisation in Bihar ahead of the next general election.
