Modi, a cult figure in Indian politics, says political scientist Vinay Sitapati
Have you ever wondered what the super glue is that holds BJP together? Vinay Sitapati, associate professor of politics and law at Ashoka University, says he is the jugalbandi of senior leadership and RSS's emphasis on teamwork and coordination.
"The Modi phenomenon is the result of a 100-year project promoted by the RSS and Jan Sangh, the forefather of the BJP," Sitapati said while speaking to Hindustan Times Editor-in-Chief Ramesh Vinayak about his guide "Jugalbandi: The BJP". before Modi” at the fabulous Vibrant Networking Forum Confabs held on Saturday in collaboration with Ashoka University.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rise to power is due to the contribution of his predecessors Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya, Shyama Prasad Mukherjee, Lal Krishna Advani and Atal Bihari Vajpayee," he said.
“We have seen that the BJP is an ideologically cohesive household that is rarely divided. The BJP engages in politics, but by no means suffers from it. This begs the question: what holds them together? The rss? If so, how? When you investigate an RSS shakha, half the time the volunteers are engaged in physical training that teaches them to work together," Sitapati said, adding: "Secondly, there are ideological classes where they are told stories of the story where the Hindus got lost. because there were traitors among them and because of power struggles. The most important thing is that they want to learn from the mistakes of their ancestors and not cut them to pieces”.
Of the jugalbandis driving the celebration, he says: “Jugalbandi is not just a symphony, but a symphony between completely different people who are the same. If you sing the same tune, it's a duet. There is something ingrained in Hindu nationalism that they always want a jodi. After all, it is both a proposal and a political celebration. She needs someone who can speak in Parliament and also someone who can organize the cadres. First, Mukherjee was the face of the general public who could argue against Nehru, while Upadhyaya was the backroom organizer. Then came Vajpayee, a great orator, and Advani fell into the role of organizer of Hindu nationalism. Now Amit Shah takes care of the cadres and Modi takes care of the Parliament.”
Among those currently at the well-attended event were Ashoka University Trustee Pranav Gupta, and Vivek Atray of the Vibrant Networking Forum, and Supreme Court Attorney Ranjit Malhotra.