HVK Archives: Indian odyssey
Indian odyssey - The Pioneer
Editorial
()
18 July 1997
Title: Indian odyssey
Author: Editorial
Publication: The Pioneer
Date: July 18, 1997
Bharatiya Janata Party president LK Advani's return to the national Capital
at the end of a gruelling 59-day countrywide rathyatra should be a matter
of immense satisfaction for him. Apart from the fact that the yatra has
helped him rediscover his own form, it has certainly enabled his party to
achieve its intended objective of spreading its message effectively in
areas not known to be its strongholds, notably Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra
Pradesh and West Bengal. Even in Tamil Nadu, dispassionate observers have
described the popular response to his yatra as "good". Mr Advani had
virtually taken sanyas from political life and resigned his seat from the
Lok Sabha after he was framed in the Jain hawala case. He vowed never to
return to active politics till he was absolved of the charge of taking
hawala money. That was an unequivocally commendable step; national leaders
of stature like his are expected to adhere to such high standards of moral
courage. And, it was equally in order when, following his acquittal by the
Delhi High Court, he decided to embark upon a journey whose main plank was
to rouse consciousness against the three major issues confronting Indian
society: "Bhay, bhookh and bhrashtachar" (fear, hunger and corruption).
Quite justifiably, Mr Advani has concluded-after traversing 15,000 km
across 21 states, including a brief foray into the Andamans-that his yatra
was "an extremely enlightening experience". He appears to have made a
strong impact on the Telangana region, once a Communist bastion, where a
large number of people turned up to see him hi defiance of a ban imposed by
the People's War Group. Clearly, the response to his visit has exceeded
the expectations of even the Andhra unit of the BJP which has lost no time
in demanding a separate Telangana state. However, given the turbulent
history of the region, this matter needs to be tackled with tact and
caution. Reassuringly for the BJP, Mr Advani has been able to rekindle
enthusiasm among party workers in most of the eastern and northern states
as well. Mr Advani's yatra may not have evoked the kind of enthusiastic
response in the north as its 1990 predecessor, but that was largely because
the BJP does not arouse the same kind of curiosity in this region now that
it is the party of Government in many states in this part of the country.
Most significantly, however, Mr Advani's success lies in projecting the BJP
as a national party which aims to appropriate the Congress's nationalist
agenda. Understandably, Congress leaders have been concerned at the
labelling of his odyssey as the "Swarna Jayanti Rathyatra" to observe the
50th anniversary of Independence. Juxtaposed against the inactivity of the
Congress on this score, the BJP has clearly seized the initiative. Mr
Advani's speeches have implicitly sought to project the BJP as the
"successor" national party to the Congress. Given the growing preoccupation
of the Congress in protecting its former ministers from the long arm of the
law and its consequent inability to formulate a political agenda for the
coming decades, Mr Advani's foray was, indeed, well-timed. What results it
delivers will, however, be known only after the ballot boxes are opened
following the next general election.
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