Road to regression

In office the BJP appeared to be focussed, confident and, at times, even cocky. Out of office, as its deliberations in Mumbai so vividly demonstrated, it seems to be sullen, divided and plainly befuddled.
This explains its double-speak on several issues of critical importance to the party''s future course of action.
Throughout the election campaign, and much against his wishes, it had projected Atal Behari Vajpayee in the most flattering terms.But a little before and during the Mumbai conclave, it went all out to cut him down to size.
Party President Venkiah Naidu''s barbs against the ''virus'' of ''individualism'' and the ''personality cult'' were pointedly aimed at him even if he continued to be acclaimed as the "tallest leader".
Vajpayee indeed gave vent to his sense of hurt at a public meeting and darkly hinted that he was about to hang up his boots.
But the very next day, party leaders, at the behest of the tallest one himself, put out the word that his remarks were no more than a jocular aside.
None of this can detract attention from the humiliation heaped on the former prime minister ever since he made it known in Manali that Narendra Modi had to be shown the door.
In Mumbai, not only did the party assert that Modi would not be asked to step down but it also upbraided his tormentor, Keshubhai Patel, for going public with his grouse against the chief minister.
Patel however was not the only one made to eat crow. Vajpayee, who had chided Modi for not upholding the rajdharma in the wake of the carnage in Gujarat, gave him a clean chit after a one-on-one meeting.
Naidu''s presidential address did list several reasons for the party''s electoral defeat. But in his eyes, none of them were half as significant as the fact that the BJP had strayed away from its ideology and idealism.
In the process, it had demoralised its cadres, alienated the outfits of the Sangh Parivar and let down its "core constituency".
It was Advani who made by far the most cogent speech in Mumbai. But the alacrity and zeal with which he endorsed Naidu''s remedy to cure the ailments afflicting the party - a miracle pill called Hindutva - took one''s breath away. Until only the other day, he was singing an entirely different tune.
At the conclave, Vajpayee, after swiftly saluting Advani for his speech, continued to harp on his moderate approach. Who can be blamed if this is seen as evidence of sharp differences at the top?
Curiously enough, the themes dear to the extremist outfits of the Sangh Parivar found no mention in the political resolution. Was the party not able to make up its mind? Or was it quite consciously nursing an ambivalence?
These questions will be answered when the party faces elections in five states over the next one year. But the answers are unlikely to resolve the BJP''s central dilemma.
Toeing Vajpayee''s line, or even remaining ambivalent on key Hindutva issues, will upset the extremist outfits and cause discomfort to the party''s "core constituency".
But a shrill Hindutva campaign against the minorities and the "pseudo-secular" parties would inevitably prevent the BJP from broadening its regional and social bases.
The blunt truth, which the BJP is as yet unwilling to acknowledge, is that the country, including an overwhelming majority of Hindus, has had enough of identity politics. For a while, Narendra Modi might bask in his glory even as Vajpayee licks his wounds.
But unless the party commits itself to the core values of the Republic - respect for pluralism in particular - it is doomed to slide into regression.