2016 will be a tough
test for Amit Shah
Amit Shah is
re-elected as president of the Bharatiya Janata Party for a full three-year
term. He is well known as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s closest political
aide, one who crafted the campaign in Uttar Pradesh to contribute 71 of the
State’s total 80 seats and ensure the BJP’s success in getting a clear majority
in the Lok Sabha. His image did suffer after the BJP’s reverses in the Delhi
and Bihar Assembly elections. But still in Modi’s BJP, Shah is arguably the
only claimant to the top post.
Shah’s power
draws from his proximity to Modi. Modi plays the development-oriented patriarch
and Shah brings up the majoritarian Hindutva mobilisation and agenda. Both Modi
and Amit Shah have reached their present levels by the sweat of their brows,
and their present status was not handed over to them on a platter due to any
family legacy.
The perfect fit
of Modi-Shah partnership was able to harvest record amount in the form of
donations in 2014-15 - over twice the combined total declared by five other
parties. Now that the Defence sector is being increasingly opened up for
private players, the same Modi-Shah combine would expect India Inc to pour in
much greater "donations" to the Hindutva election coffers. And, of
course, our patriotic "Indian-made foreign investors" from Mauritius,
Cayman Islands etc would also have to chip in -- to build up this grand Hindu
Rashtra!
Amit Shah as
unopposed elected President of BJP is clearly indicating that he has stronghold
with the Party. His dynamism, dedication and sincere efforts has proved to be
of immense use for PM Modi and his Council of Ministers of BJP-NDA government.
Now the responsibilities of Amit Shah has been enlarged at State and Centre
level to clear BJP position from past controversies - Growing Intolerance,
Dadri lynch and Dalit death and selection of Film Institute Pune and others -
which may be pointed out by politicians of opposition parties. It is expected that
Amit Shah will try to handle these types of activities with positivism and make
road for progress and development of Country with the support and cooperation
of peoples belonging to various communities, races and castes of India.
Thus the year
2016 has begun on a positive note for Amit Shah through his election as Party
President with an assured term of 3 years. In the process, Shah gets the
prestigious responsibility of improving the party’s facade and set it ready for
the next parliamentary elections. 2016 will also be an acid test for Shah when
seven states will go for assembly elections. Fortunes of BJP and Shah have
close links to the outcome in these seven states. Modi has already set the tone
in Assam and it is for Shah to carve out a plan that will consolidate the party
to a position wherefrom through comfort, command and strength, the party is
able to exert what it wants and not like J & K where on a razor edge it is
unable to wield influence over the regional party or Delhi and Bihar where the
party faced a rout and eviction from scene. Shah knows his onions and
respecting his experience and good history of the recent past, we wish him good
luck.
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