BJP's two influential voices Rajnath Singh and Narendra Modi

09 February, 2013

That BJP can speak in two voices without any trace of embarrassment was evident on February 6 when its President Rajnath Singh pledged before the saints in Kumbh Mela at Allahabad that a Ram Temple at Ayodhya was a matter of faith for Hindus and that the BJP was committed to its construction 'once it comes to power with a majority.'

On the other hand, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi spoke of everything except the temple or the RSS. Instead he glorified Swami Vivekanand, knowing fully well that he is a national hero, and at the same time flagged his ambition to be Prime Minister, choosing 'the disciples of Google Guru' to unveil his 'vision' of a brand new India that would minimize state intervention, maximize 'good' governance and capitalize on its 'greatest asset' called the youth.

It was our pledge and will remain our pledge to build a Ram Temple in Ayodhya," Rajnath said while attending the Marg Darshan Mandal meeting organized by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad at the Kumbh Mela, giving a broad hint that the Ram Temple might return as its centre-piece before the 2014 elections, reported The Times of India. Modi on the other hand completely ignored the temple and spoke on 'Emerging Business Models in a Global Scenario'.

Raj Nath was addressing the saints at the Mahakumbh, the biggest fair on earth whereas Narendra Modi had cleverly and carefully picked his venue - Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) of Delhi, one of the best commerce and economics colleges in the country - to make his national pitch.

Incidentally, Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) is the alma mater of many leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), including Awn Jaitley, Vijay Goel, Jagdish Mukhi and Vijay Jolly. He was therefore quite sure of getting good response from the students there just as Rajnath Singh was certain of getting a good audience at Mahakumbh in Allahabad.While Rajnath also raised the issue of the poor quality of water in the Ganga, expressing solidarity with the river and demanding that 'no city, big or small, should be allowed to discharge, untreated effluents into the Ganga'.

Instead he spoke about computers in the tone of a management consultant donning a Swadesi touch even though he would have never qualified as a student at SRCC, where the percentages demanded for entry are too high. But he managed to mesmerize 1800 students who cheered him repeatedly when he glorified the role of the youth, saying that the US and China were ageing nations and that our youth power would make India the greatest power as predicted by Swami Vivekanand. But there was a difference between the Kumbh and the Delhi meetings.

While Rajnath Singh was also heard with rapt attention, there were no demonstrations against him. But that cannot be said for the Modi lecture in Delhi. He might have thrilled a captive audience but outside the venue there were massive demonstrations against him. Angry leftist students shouted anti-Modi slogans, reported The Times of India. Water cannons were reportedly used to disperse the protesting students. But in Allahabad it was all peaceful. Modi is to visit Allahabad too. Will he forget computers and talk of Ram or Ram temple here?