As if the ‘I am a
Hindu Nationalist’ banners and the puppy remark were not controversial enough,
the BJP’s potential Prime Ministerial Candidate Mr. Narendra Modi is back with
another master plan which is creating quite a stir in the mainstream media. Oh
yes, I’m talking about BJP’s Rs. 5 Hyderabad rally. The rally, planned by the
BJP back in the day when Andhra Pradesh was one state, shot to instant stardom
not only because of its chief speaker but because the organisers decided to
charge Rs 5 from everyone who wanted to hear Modi speak. The announcement as
usual led to huge political discourse by inviting a storm of brickbats and
counter jibes.
While the Union
I&B Minister, Manish Tewari tweeted that by putting a five rupees price on
his speech, the BJP has given out the true worth of its much celebrated leader,
BJP Spokesperson Nirmala Seetharaman was prompt to retaliate and explained that
this was a noble attempt to garner funds for charity. Now what exactly is the
logic behind this sort of pricing of a potential Prime Ministerial candidate, I
have no idea. But it certainly doesn’t help the BJP in anyway other than
inviting unnecessary criticism from all quarters.
The much hyped rally
is expected to take place today as Narendra Modi arrives in Hyderabad amidst
tight security. Voicing his excitement in Twitter, he tweeted this morning “On my way to Hyderabad - I can feel the enthusiasm of
the Youth already. Looking forward to Nava Bharat Yuva Bheri!”. While the fact
remains that the Congress is having an upper hand over the BJP in swooping up support from the Telangana quarters
and the opposition didn’t also see it coming this soon, Modi is expected to
work his charm is biting into the Congress’ currently safe vote-bank in divided
Andhra Pradesh.
As per reports in the
New Indian Express, Modi is expected to explain and reiterate his party’s
position on small state demands and possibly also try and expose flaws in the
Congress’ approach to the division of states. He would explain to the audience how committed his
party is to smaller states and cite creation of three states during the NDA
regime. He is likely to reiterate his opposition to Hyderabad remaining as
joint capital for the two states since it is not on the border but is situated
deep inside Telangana. BJP has been pulling
out the plugs to make sure Narendra Modi’s maiden Hyderabad address is an
overwhelming success. From aggressive Twitter publicity to live streaming that
party has been trying to make sure that Modi’s speech hits all the right notes
in a strife-torn Hyderabad at the moment.
The rally, named
Navabharat Yuva Bheri keeping in mind Modi’s target audience, will extensively
be used by the BJP as a plank to rile the youth from the Seemandhra region.
While the BJP itself was for the division of Andhra Pradesh and has repeatedly
and vocally backed the demand for a separate Telangana, the party will try its best to cash in on the widespread
anger seething in people from Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema. How the party
will pander to both supporters of Telangana and those opposed to it has been
left entirely to the politicking talents of Modi – the party’s poll beacon at
the moment.
Now it would be
interesting to see what might work in Modi’s favour as he addresses the rally
in Hyderabad today. How he cuts through the Congress and balance those for the
creation of a separate Telengana and those against it is the question of the
hour now. As the BJP is banking all its hope in the Gujarat Chief Minister,
what kind of magic can he create in a land whose domestic politics has been
totally different from that the rest of the country, it would indeed prove to
be a litmus test for him as they believe that its only him who can hijack
Congress’s plans in the state.
For all sorts of bouquets and brickbats feel free to leave a comment below or mail me at author.vish94@gmail.com
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