12:26 AM
Narendra Modi ended his three-day fast Monday evening with a speech rich in promise and rhetoric. He said his mission had just begun, and that confirmed everyone's suspicion that he wants to be prime minister in 2014, when the next parliamentary elections are due.
The fast was a Modi show rather than a party gala. Senior BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu was around, and said Modi was prime ministerial material. But the fast might have upset party patriarch L K Advani by stealing his rath yatra thunder.
Modi's high-profile demonstration, which he said was in the cause of communal harmony, did many things at many levels: put the Congress on the defensive, showed up the cracks in the National Democratic Alliance, and, within the BJP, revealed who was in Modi's camp.
If he wants to rise in national politics, Modi will have to erase the shame of the 2002 communal riots that claimed over a thousand lives. That's not going to be easy, and he hasn't apologised for it yet. Even during the fast, he showed no contrition about the two days when he allowed Hindu mobs to run riot and 'take revenge' for the Godhra train carnage, which claimed 59 lives, but he is definitely doing all he can to acquire a softer image. That won't be easy, of course. Muslim clerics have said a fast alone cannot wash away his sins.
Not that other things are going according to his script. The Gujarat police arrested riot victims and activists protesting outside his fast venue, inviting criticism that he continues to be far too autocratic in his methods. Even alliance friends like the JD(U) are saying his fast is unconstitutional, and he has no credentials to lead a nation of 125 crore people if he can't make five crore feel secure in Gujarat.
Anna Hazare has proved recently that ordinary citizens can be mobilised with the help of a hunger strike, and Modi has strategically picked up the very same weapon to establish his credentials not so much with the Gujaratis as with national voters.
The Congress in Gujarat tried to match his fast with its own, but Shankarsingh Vaghela's showing has been completely overshadowed by the Modi spectacle. (The glamour quotient at Modi's fast venue was added on the last day, Monday, by movie star Hema Malini). Modi is getting so much attention because many see him as the future prime minister of India, even if he and his party are circumspect about saying they will project him that way.
Open Magazine believes neither Modi nor Rajiv Gandhi can really come out of the ignominy of communal violence. Just as Modi sat around while violence raged, Rajiv Gandhi did nothing for two days as armed mobs went after Sikhs in the wake of his mother Indira Gandhi's death.
As for the alignments within the BJP, Sushma Swaraj flew to Gujarat to be by Modi's side when he broke his fast. Sushma is a PM candidate herself, and it is possible she is aligning with a camp that could swing matters if she is locked in a contest with someone like, say, Arun Jaitley. The faultlines are evident. Karnataka Chief Minister Sadananda Gowda calls Modi his role mode, but other BJP chief ministers have remained indifferent to Modi's grand rally, neither commenting on it nor sending the mandatory good wishes.
Support for Modi came from unexpected quarters. Raj Thackeray arrived from Mumbai to announce that his party, the MNS, would support Modi's bid to be prime minister.
Modi likes to be known as a leader who rules with an iron hand. Even his critics concede he has brought business and prosperity to his state. His popularity comes from his reputation as a 'clean administrator', as one who won't loot people's money to enrich himself. That an image the BJP will not want to squander away, especially since party leaders such as Janardhana Reddy are in jail for corruption. Modi's contemporary till two months ago, B S Yeddyurappa, has been indicted in a Lokayukta report on illegal mining. Even if the BJP would like to capitalise on Modi's corruption-free image, there are many ambitious leaders in the party who want him confined to Gujarat.
Classical dancer and activist Mallika Sarabhai on Monday alleged Modi had used people's money to bribe her lawyer into weakening a public interest case she had filed against his government. A retired policeman has confirmed that he gave Rs 10 lakh to be handed over to a junior lawyer.
The fast and its impact will continue to be debated over the next few days. Has Modi done an Anna and suddenly acquired a saintly halo? The next few elections will tell, but even if he doesn't go all the way up to the PM's post, no one can accuse him of not trying.
The fast was a Modi show rather than a party gala. Senior BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu was around, and said Modi was prime ministerial material. But the fast might have upset party patriarch L K Advani by stealing his rath yatra thunder.
Modi's high-profile demonstration, which he said was in the cause of communal harmony, did many things at many levels: put the Congress on the defensive, showed up the cracks in the National Democratic Alliance, and, within the BJP, revealed who was in Modi's camp.
If he wants to rise in national politics, Modi will have to erase the shame of the 2002 communal riots that claimed over a thousand lives. That's not going to be easy, and he hasn't apologised for it yet. Even during the fast, he showed no contrition about the two days when he allowed Hindu mobs to run riot and 'take revenge' for the Godhra train carnage, which claimed 59 lives, but he is definitely doing all he can to acquire a softer image. That won't be easy, of course. Muslim clerics have said a fast alone cannot wash away his sins.
Not that other things are going according to his script. The Gujarat police arrested riot victims and activists protesting outside his fast venue, inviting criticism that he continues to be far too autocratic in his methods. Even alliance friends like the JD(U) are saying his fast is unconstitutional, and he has no credentials to lead a nation of 125 crore people if he can't make five crore feel secure in Gujarat.
Anna Hazare has proved recently that ordinary citizens can be mobilised with the help of a hunger strike, and Modi has strategically picked up the very same weapon to establish his credentials not so much with the Gujaratis as with national voters.
The Congress in Gujarat tried to match his fast with its own, but Shankarsingh Vaghela's showing has been completely overshadowed by the Modi spectacle. (The glamour quotient at Modi's fast venue was added on the last day, Monday, by movie star Hema Malini). Modi is getting so much attention because many see him as the future prime minister of India, even if he and his party are circumspect about saying they will project him that way.
Open Magazine believes neither Modi nor Rajiv Gandhi can really come out of the ignominy of communal violence. Just as Modi sat around while violence raged, Rajiv Gandhi did nothing for two days as armed mobs went after Sikhs in the wake of his mother Indira Gandhi's death.
As for the alignments within the BJP, Sushma Swaraj flew to Gujarat to be by Modi's side when he broke his fast. Sushma is a PM candidate herself, and it is possible she is aligning with a camp that could swing matters if she is locked in a contest with someone like, say, Arun Jaitley. The faultlines are evident. Karnataka Chief Minister Sadananda Gowda calls Modi his role mode, but other BJP chief ministers have remained indifferent to Modi's grand rally, neither commenting on it nor sending the mandatory good wishes.
Support for Modi came from unexpected quarters. Raj Thackeray arrived from Mumbai to announce that his party, the MNS, would support Modi's bid to be prime minister.
Modi likes to be known as a leader who rules with an iron hand. Even his critics concede he has brought business and prosperity to his state. His popularity comes from his reputation as a 'clean administrator', as one who won't loot people's money to enrich himself. That an image the BJP will not want to squander away, especially since party leaders such as Janardhana Reddy are in jail for corruption. Modi's contemporary till two months ago, B S Yeddyurappa, has been indicted in a Lokayukta report on illegal mining. Even if the BJP would like to capitalise on Modi's corruption-free image, there are many ambitious leaders in the party who want him confined to Gujarat.
Classical dancer and activist Mallika Sarabhai on Monday alleged Modi had used people's money to bribe her lawyer into weakening a public interest case she had filed against his government. A retired policeman has confirmed that he gave Rs 10 lakh to be handed over to a junior lawyer.
The fast and its impact will continue to be debated over the next few days. Has Modi done an Anna and suddenly acquired a saintly halo? The next few elections will tell, but even if he doesn't go all the way up to the PM's post, no one can accuse him of not trying.
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