A PARTY WITH A DIFFERENCE

In the decade of 2004-2014, there were many financial dealings which were not in the interest of the nation. There were allegations of wrong doing against the ministers and a few cases were filed against a few of the ministers.  CBI was asked to look into many issues like the allocation of 2G spectrum, Common Wealth Games, Coal mine allocation etc.  There were allegations against the Prime Minister himself in the coal mine allocation issue. There were allegations of wrongful land deals in which the son in-law of the president of the GOP reportedly made huge profits. The BJP capitalised on these and made them an election issue and came to power with a catchy slogan 'A party with a difference'. The then prime ministerial candidate of BJP even went to the extent of claiming that 'nai kaoonga; kaa nai doonga' meaning that he would not be corrupt nor would allow any one to be corrupt.  This is the background the BJP had an unexpected mandate from the people of the country as they were already fed up with the financial iregularities and charge of corruption that were being heaped on the ministers of the erstwhile government  

With this background, the opposition parties and the media helped by the opposition parties had been waiting in the wings to pounce on the BJP if they even sniff a charge of corruption or favouritism to any one from the ruling party heavy weights (pun unintended).  Therefore, it is but natural for the left leaning website wire.in and the opposition to jump up to claim that Mr. Jay Shah son of Amit Shah the national president of the BJP is heading a company which was having a turnover of 50000/- in one year which became Rs. 800 million in just under a year; the company had been sanctioned a huge loan by a nationalised bank. Mr. Jay Shah immediately filed a defamation case against the website for a sum of Rs. 1 billion.  The case of defamation has to be taken up in the court of law and evidence produced to prove either way.  Instead the government immediately fielded a senior government minister to meet the press to issue clarification. Another senior minister also joined the fray in the issue giving clarification on the claims by the website. The case might come up in the court of law for evidence and due orders after hearing both sides. Or it may lead to an out of court settlement.  But fielding government ministers to counter the charge of the website and the opposition makes the matters a little more serious than what it could be.

The ministers jumping onto the bandwagon to exonerate the son of the party president that he had not done anything wrong or the loan was given by a NBFC at an interest rate as for the normal business transactions etc. do not absolve the party with a difference in keeping its image clean.  As Yashwant Sinha was making a point what was the need for the ministers to jump to the defense of the son of the party president.  It is for the son of the president of BJP to answer the queries and if any minister is asked questions in a press meet, the ministers can parry the questions.  

With the heavy weights turning in defense of the actions of the son of the national president of the BJP with neither the son nor the president has given any statement except filing a defamation suit against the website, creates a load of suspicion in the minds of common man.  The relentless badgering by the media and keeping the issue alive at least till the Gujarat elections are over, is likely to have an effect on the absolute strangle hold that the BJP had been able to keep over the Gujarat assembly elections in the past three terms and also in the elections to the national parliament in 2019.  Though this issue may get resolved sooner, the same may be raked up again by the opposition parties during the parliamentary elections in 2019.  Not only that such a defense by the high profile ministers from the government of the son of the national president gives one an impression 'is there anything beyond what meets the eye'. 

The elections to the state and the national parliament cannot be won only by the prime ministerial candidate. The persons standing for election also need some mass support and be able to mobilise the voters to vote for him on the D day.  Though the personal charisma of the national level leaders have turned the tide in favour of one party or the other, for effective governance there should be able and experienced politicians who are able to get elected on their own as well.  The BJP is going about getting almost every one who is not happy with the way the GOP is functioning into its fold.  This sends a feeling to the public that BJP also embarks on the same tried and tested method to engineer defections in large numbers to its ranks from opposition parties.  The various dissensions in opposition ranks seen and heard in the last few months is an indicator as what are the game plans of the BJP.  The actions of the party in admitting in haste people who ditch the GOP or other opposition parties into fold though a politically savvy move does not bode well in the long run.  The claim that BJP is a 'party with a difference' starts to sound hollow.

The image of the BJP as 'a party with difference' has definitely taken a beating whatever be the outcome of the defamation suit.  The prime minister will be forced to come clean on this issue sooner to keep his promise that 'nai kaaonga; kaa nai doonga'.