NEW DELHI, APRIL 4: The lure of political power seems to have affected the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) search for leaders of adequate stature and experience to man various organisational posts at the national level. With less than a month to go before its new president takes charge, the party finds itself in a quandary. Most of the leaders of consequence have either become ministers in the Atal Behari Vajpayee Government or are lobbying frantically for a berth in the charmed circle.Thus the party's insistence on adhering to the principle of `one man, one post' has created problems for its leadership. A party, whose cadre has always been asked place the `sangathan' (organisation) before anything else, today finds that the trappings of power have rendered most of its top and even medium-level leadership vulnerable.
There are of course a few exceptions. People like Sunder Singh Bhandari (who is currently one of the vice-presidents), Kushabhau Thakre, K N Govindacharya (general secretaries) and NarendraModi (secretary), who are also RSS pracharaks, have steadfastly refused to be part of the Government and declared their intention of working for the organisation. But these are only exceptions. And when Lal Krishna Advani lays down office early next month, his successor -- in all likelihood, it will be Thakre -- therefore would have an onerous task at hand. Not only will he have slots which will become vacant because many officebearers have become ministers in the Vajpayee Government, but he will also have to ensure that his team has leaders who have a grasp of the organisational set-up.
The new party president will, a senior BJP leader confessed, also be expected to do a tough balancing act by giving due representation to various regions, OBCs, SCs, STs, women and youth. ``He is bound to face a tough time locating leaders who fulfill these criteria,'' he observed.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
