BJP should develop an ideology based on the works of Vivekananda, Aurobindo and Dayananda Saraswati

If the BJP wants to succeed? by Neeraj Gupta on Jun 18, 2009 11:43 AM Permalink Hide replies

If BJP wants to succeed it must shun away the ideology of Hindutva and take up Hindu Nationalism of Vivekananda and Aurobindo. Majority of Hindus do not know what Hindutva stands for. The word has become too mechanical and whenever it crops up, especially during the time of elections it sounds extremely hollow and so do the ones who profess this ideology. BJP should develop an ideology based on the works of the Hindu thinkers like Vivekananda, Aurobindo and Dayananda Saraswati. These are the real spiritual thinkers of modern India whose works depict the essence of Hinduism.

BJP should further look for intellectuals in this category who are modern in their thinking at the same time proud of their culture and can effectively counter the pseudo intellectuals in the Congress and the left devoid of any morals. To govern one needs to have a clear policy on all fronts. That is the ideology should be able to define BJP’s policies on governance. At the moment there too much clutter in their policies. And because of this clutter the message does not reach the common man.

BJP-RSS: Split is the only option Jyotirmaya Sharma June 9, 2009

Thirdly, the BJP has to give up its espousal of Hindutva, whether of the Savarkar variety or of the Golwalkar kind, and abandon its quest for a Hindu Rashtra and an Akhanda Bharat. It cannot do so till such time that it redefines its relation to three important, but related elements: Indian modernity, Western modernity and the West itself. The BJP's thinking at the moment is a curious mixture of pre-colonial ideology and post-colonial rhetoric. Neither the aggression of a pre-colonial era, nor the designer victimhood of a postcolonial nation is likely to take it very far. Its inability to delineate the place of the West within India manifests itself in instances of moral policing and violence in the name of protecting Hindu culture.

Another element that the BJP has never been able to come to terms with is its blind parroting of the RSS's preoccupation with India's glory being safe only when there is a strong centre. It has supported small states and mistakenly believes that this is its answer to problems of Indian federalism. In order to survive, the BJP has to seriously rethink its model of a functioning federal polity. [...]

It can remain a party that works for the welfare of Hindus, mindful of the fact that there is nothing called a Hindu vote, a unified Hindu community and no putative Hindu Rashtra lurking in the corner and about to become a reality. But there is another factor that the BJP ought to keep in mind if it were to contemplate a serious genetic engineering as suggested by Swapan Dasgupta. The writer teaches politics at the University of Hyderabad Courtesy: Mail Today Offtrack Interviews Columns Key Contestants The Buzz Elections 2009: Expert Speak The New Cabinet Poll Allure India Today Election 2009 Election News Columns BJP-RSS: Split is the only option Jyotirmaya Sharma June 9, 2009

10 pieces of advice for the beleaguered BJP

"There is nothing called a 'Hindu vote'. There is no political or social outfit that can claim to represent all Hindus, much less hope to transform a mythical Hindu unity into votes," writes Jyotirmaya Sharma, a professor at the University of Hyderabad, in a national daily. Sharma says the BJP can afford to remain a Hindu nationalist party but it will have to drop its quest for a Hindu 'rashtra' (state).

HT Home Blogs Home > Capital Closeup Pankaj Vohra
Is BJP on verge of a split?

The problem is that the BJP has always presented the negative aspects of hindutva before the people in the past and never the positive sides. It is like you can play Holi with mud and with Gulal but the BJP has chosen to play it with mud, the Gujarat riots were an example. It has never tried to project Swami Vivekanand or Sri Aurobindo’s thoughts in a concerted manner...

The BJP stands at cross roads today and if it does not fall in line with the RSS, the BJP maybe headed for a split. But who knows? Posted by Pankaj Vohra on Wednesday, June 17, 2009 at 5:00 pm Filed under Capital Closeup, india