Poll rout now exposes state BJP's Gujarati-Maharashtrian rift

Poll rout now exposes state BJP's Gujarati-Maharashtrian rift
BASHIR PATHAN

GANDHINAGAR, OCT 11: All those who actively participated in the Maha Gujarat Movement could not have imagined that Maharashtrians -- with the RSS tag -- would continue to dominate the political scene in the state 40 years after the bifurcation of the erstwhile Bombay state.

Right from the ruling BJP's taluka and district units to the state-level set-up, the `Marathi coterie' dominates. These RSS leaders -- ``imported'', as many disgruntled leaders dub them, from the neighbouring state -- have posted their men in key positions in the party organisation at all levels.

It has caused a great deal of resentment among Gujarati party workers and leaders, especially those who do not belong to the Sangh Parivar. However, not one of them has dared voice dissent against these leaders, who include Madhukar Kulkarni, Bhaskarrao Damle, Sanjay Joshi, Mukundrao Devbhankar, Tushar Deshmukh, C.R. Patil and Dilip Deshmukh.

However, that may change now. The BJP's debacle in the just-concluded elections to the municipal corporations and panchayats in the state has prompted many Gujarati leaders and workers to air their views against the ``authoritarian'' style of functioning of the Maharashtrian ``mandal'' which, they allege, is largely responsible for the reverses.

A section of Gujarati leaders has even raised a demand that all Maharashtrians holding key posts in the BJP be removed and replaced by Gujaratis to ``boost the sagging morale of the party and restore confidence of grass-root workers''. Their main target apparently is Sanjay Joshi, an RSS man holding the vital post of general secretary of the BJP's state unit.

When contacted by The Indian Express, Joshi refused to comment on the charges being levelled against him and other Maharashtrian leaders. All he would say was: ``You better ask the party's official spokesman, Bharat Pandya, about all this.''

Pandya, for his part, asserted: ``There is no substance in what our Gujarati brethren say about our revered RSS leaders from Maharashtra, who have been rendering social service in Gujarat with the spirit of nationalism and not provincialism. They should not be held responsible for the party's poll debacle as it is the election committee that is involved in selecting candidates.''

However, the non-Maharashtrian party functionaries are not impressed with such arguments. ``It is Joshi who has appointed swayamsevaks from Maharashtra as organising secretaries in almost all district units. They have been entrusted with the special task of keeping a tab on local party workers and reporting regularly to the party leadership. Based on this report, the performance of a local party worker is assessed and he is given due importance in the party set-up,'' charged a senior party worker.

He added that the `coterie' was ``quick to take credit when the BJP performed well in general or local elections but would not hesitate to disown poll reverses and blame them on local leaders and workers''. According to him, ``Joshi always trusts his henchmen, ignoring sincere and senior grass-root workers.''

The party leader also warns: ``If the influence of this coterie is not checked, the party organisation will further weaken and debacles like the recent one will continue to occur in Gujarat.''