CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
The Bharatiya Janata Party came into being in 1980. But since the
1990s, the BJP has become a force to re~n with. The party has not only
been able to posit itself as an opposition political party, it has also been able
to be in power in the centre as well as in some of the states in alliance with
other political parties, mostly regional. The BJ P's rise to prominence was
the defining feature of the Indian politics during the 90s of the last century.
It is well known that the party's increasing prominence in the national
level governance created opportunities for it to expand in regions which
remained inaccessible to the BJP so far. "The BJP's Organizational origins
are associated with the historical development of Hindu nationalist politics in
the East."1 The founding President of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, the
forerunner party to the BJP, was Shyama Prasad Mookherjee, "a prominent
member of the Bengali bhadralok who, at its inception, led a significant
group from eastern India within the party. However, by the mid-1950s the
party had lost ground in electoral and organizational terms in the region--
most especially in West Bengal."2
In West Bengal, the communal political parties have not been able to
make much headway. In the first Lok Sabha election held in the year 1952,
the Jana Sangh, the predecessor of the Bharatiya Janata Party, got only 2
seats and 12 in the Bid han Sabha. But, after the death of Dr Mukherjee, the
Jana Sangh could not influence the Bengal politics much. Hindu
organizations like the RSS, VHP etc. tried to spread their tentacles in
several places but failed to impress the Bengali mind or politics.
Subsequently, as a reaction to the imposition of the emergency by the then
Congress Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, the Janata Party, an amalgamation
of several political parties, emerged on the political firmament of India. Jana
Sangh decided to get itself merged with the Janata Party. But the issue of
Problems and prospects of the BJP in West Bengal 0 2
dual membership forced the Janasanghis to come out of the Janata Party
and form a new one called the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Meanwhile, in the year 1977, the Left Front came to power in West
Bengal. The people of West Bengal being politically very conscious and
secular minded, the BJP could not influence the people of West Bengal
either politically or organizationally. It was only in 1998 when the Party
made an alliance with the Trinamool Congress that the Party got a foothold
in West Bengal. The Party could secure one Lok Sabha seat from
DumDum. The Party could even send its only representative to the Bidhan
Sabha in a by-election. Surprisingly, the Party could capture two seats in
the 1999 Lok Sabha election, Dum Dum and Krishnanagar. It should be
kept in mind that the BJP in West Bengal concentrated all its efforts in the
border areas to build its organization among the Bangladeshi Hindu
refugees. In 2001? the alliance between the BJP and the Trinamool
Congress got snapped and the BJP was forced to contest elections on its
own but failed to secure any seat. Again, in 2003, the BJP and the
Trinamool forged an alliance but the Party fared very badly in all elections
held thereafter. In the Lok Sabha election held in 2004, and in the Bidhan
Sabha election held in 2006 in West Bengal, the party could not secure any
seat. Moreover, its percentage share of votes got reduced drastically. In the
2009 Lok Sabha election,the party was able to secure the Darjeeling seat
with the help of the Gorkha Jana Mukti Morcha, a political outfit in the
Darjeeling District, spearheading a movement for separate statehood for
Darjeeling. The BJP's performance in the 2008 Panchayat election has
also been very dismal compared to the previous elections.
Against this background, what has been done in the pages that
follow is to analyse the problems and the prospects of the BJP in West
Bengal in the light of the data collected during field survey carried out in the
two Blocks of the District of Burdwan, West Bengal, namely, Burdwan
Block-1 and Purbasthali Block-1 on the basis of a number of questions
related to the BJP's political agenda and its policies. It may be pointed out
Problems and prospects of the BJP in West Bengal 0 3
here that this type of research work on the said topic has not been
undertaken by anyone in West Bengal.
Objectives of the Study
This study is aimed at analysing the problems and the prospects of the BJP
in West Bengal. We may formulate the main objectives of this study as
under:
1) To study ~he circumstances that led to the emergence of the
Bharatiya Janata Party.
2) To study the ideological framework of the party.
3) To study the issues and the policies of the BJP.
4) To study the organizational structure and the programmes and
policies of the BJP in West Bengal.
5) To study the electoral performance of the BJP in West Bengal.
6) To study the responses of the respondents of the two Blocks to the
core issues of the BJP, like, Religion-based politics, Babri Masjid
demolition, Hindu Rashtra, construction of Ram Mandir at Ayodhya
etc forming the core of the ideology of the BJP.
7) To study the responses of the respondents of the two Blocks to the
BJP's stand on the Bangladeshi infiltration, the most important issue
of the BJP in West Bengal.
8) To study the responses of the respondents of the two Blocks to
questions like, whether the BJP is a communal political party, the
future of the BJP in West Bengal, whether there is any alternative to
the Left Front Government in West Bengal, whether the BJP is a
political front of the RSS etc.
9) To study the problems faced by the BJP in West Bengal.
1 0) To study the prospects of the BJP in West Bengal.
Research Methodology
"Methodology means science of method as well as a body of
methods or systematic procedures and techniques required to be followed
for accomplishing an activity. So methodology of research implies the body
Problems and prospects of the BJP in West Bengal 0 4
of methods, that is, procedures and techniques of collection, organization,
analysis and evaluation of data or facts, which should be mastered and
followed in order to execute research"3.
In order to execute research properly, one is required to follow a
distinct and well-specified research methodology. In an empirical and micro
level study, the importance of both the primary and secondary sources of
data cannot be ignored. Data have been collected through primary sources
like observation, interview as well as from secondary sources like books,
journals, newspapers, unpublished thesis etc. Besides, books, journals,
newspapers, leaflets, reports etc. published by the BJP have also been
made use of.
Respondents of both the CD Blocks have been selected by random
sampling method for interview and both the structured and unstructured
questionnaires have been used to elicit their responses.
Data collected thus have been processed and analysed. Every effort
has been made to ensure the veracity of the data. Last of all, the
hypotheses have been tested on the basis of the collected data and the
truthfulness or falsity of the hypotheses has been determined and changes
made wherever necessary.
Hypotheses
Hypothesis is a statement regarding the reality which may be either
true or false. "It is an assumption-based statement of a proposition or a
reason.able guess which the researcher seeks to prove through his study."4
"Without hypothesis research may become unfocussed and a random
search for data much of which turning out as useless or superfluous" 5 The
present study intends to test the following hypotheses.
1) The people of West Bengal, being politically very conscious and
secular-minded, do not support the ideology of the BJP and hence
want a secular Government in power.
Problems and prospects of the BJP in West Bengal 0 5
2) The Leftist and the Secular political parties in West Bengal are the
major stumbling blocks on the path of the BJP's becoming a force to
reckon with in West Bengal.
3) Whatever base the BJP has in West Bengal is found to be among the
Hindus, especially the Bangladeshi Hindu refugees, not among the
Muslim minorities, the SCs and the STs and the people not affiliated to
any political party.
4) The people of West Bengal do not consider the BJP as an alternative
to the Left Front Government.
Review of Literature
A turning point in Indian politics is the meteoric rise of the Bharatiya
Janata Party to the national political scene. Expectedly, the efforts made by
the BJP to occupy the political center-stage caused a lot of academic
interest, as a result of which, a plethora of literature dealing with the
ideology, leadership, organization, electoral performance of the BJP saw
the light of the day. B.D. Graham's Hindu Nationalism and Indian Politics:
The Origins, and Development of the Jana Sangh 6, and Craig Baxter's The
Jana Sangh: A Biography of an Indian Political Party 7, were devoted to the
Jana Sangh the predecessor of the BJP. An authoritative book on the BJP
is the The Hindu Nationalist Movement and Indian Politics: 1925s to the
1990s authored by Christrophe Jaffrelot 8. In this book, Jaffrelot has made
an attempt to construct a model of Hindu Nationalist Strategies taking
specially Madhya Pradesh into account. Another book of importance is
Hindu Nationalists in India : The Rise of the Bharatiya Janata Party
authored by Yogendra K Malik and V B Singh. 9 The book deals with the
ideology, the heritage, the organization, the leadership, the strategies,
policies and issue orientations, electoral performance, problems, prospects
of the BJP. Gita Puri's 10 Hindutva Politics in India: Genesis, Political
Strategies, and Growth of Bharatiya Janata Party is mainly based on the
analysis of the BJP's documents. The book is an attempt to understand the
origins and the subsequent social and geographical expansion of the party
since it's coming into being in 1980 to 1998. C P Bhambhri's 11 Bharatiya
Problems and prospects of the BJP in West Bengal 0 6
Janata Party : Peripheri to Centre critically deals with the ideology,
organizational structure, electoral performance, strategies, changing social
base, the party in Government, foreign policy outlook of the BJP. The book
also explains the reasons for the growth of the BJP. The main objective of
the book, according to the author, is to find out the social factors which
helped the BJP to emerge from a periphery to center. Another critical book
on BJP is The RSS and the BJP: A Division of labour written by A G
Noorani. 12 The book exposes the calculated ambiguity resorted to by the
Sangh Parivar while, in reality, a division of labour exists between the RSS
and the BJP.
Hindu Nationalism: A Reader edited by Christrophe Jaffrelot 13 is
another important book which deals with the history of Hindu Nationalism
and issues which occupy major positions within Hindu nationalism central to
the practice of the Hindutva movement. Dr Partha Banerjee 14, a former
member of the Sangh Parivar, has written a book called In the Belly of the
Beast: The Hindu Supermacist RSS and BJP of India. In this book, Dr
Banerjee critically discusses the Sangh Parivar organizations and deals with
such issues like the future of the Indian secularism and democracy as well
as human rights, women's rights and minority rights. According to the
author, the book is a reminder of the responsibilities of the citizens of India
for the future of a progressive and secular India
Coalition Politics and Hindu Nationalism edited by Katharine Adeney
and Lawrence Saez15 is a collection of articles, which examine the
emergence of the Bharatiya Janata Party in India, and the ways in which its
Hindu nationalist agenda have been affected by the constraints of being a
dominant member of a coalition government. Making India Hindu : Religion,
Community and the Politics of Democracy in India edited by David Ludden 16
is another important book on Hindu nationalism. Conceived in the aftermath
of the Babri Masjid demolition, this book elucidates genealogies, politics and
effects of Hindu majoritarianism. This book indicates that Hinduvta is here to
stay, despite its precarious fortunes, small minority support and a long
history of sitting on the sidelines. Another book worth mentioning here is A
Problems and prospects ofthe BJP in West Bengal 0 7
New Era In The Indian Polity: A Study of Atal Behari Vajpayee and the BJP
by G N S Raghavan 17. This book is found to be sympathetic to the BJP and
portrays Vajpayee as a leader comparable to Jawaharlal Nehru and who is
able to rectify the socially divisive policies and to correct the elitist course of
economic development thereby showing to the world that there is an
alternative to the Marxist and the Capitalist models of economic
development.
Hindu Nationalism And Governance edited by John McGuire and lan
Copland 18 is a book which deals with the BJP's governance. The book
shows the recasting of the core elements of the ideology of the BJP in order
to be the dominant member of a coalition government. The book also sheds
light on the reasons for the slow progress of the Hindu right after the 2004
Lok Sabha election defeat and tells us that the BJP will be required to
balance the demands of the RSS with its need for regional allies in its quest
for power in the long run. Partha Ghosh 19 in his book BJP and the evolution
of Hindu Nationalism : periphery to center deals with the historical
background of the BJP, its rise to power, its ideology and political agenda,
economic policy and foreign policy. The author expresses the hope that the
future of India does not rest with BJP's Hindutva or on secularism as
enshrined in our constitution but it lies in the hands of people. So long as
plurality is there, nobody can harm the Indian society.
Achin Vanaik20, in his book, Communalism Contested: Religion,
Modernity and Secularization provides an analysis of the dramatic rise of
Hindu communalism and the growing cynicism about the importance of the
secularism and secularization. Professor Vanaik suggests in his book that a
powerful, organized Left and Women's movement together can only ensure
secularism and secularization.
Besides the books stated above, we can also mention some articles
dealing with the BJP. In an article entitled, 'The BJP's Onward March', Atal
Behari Vajpayee21 deals with the history behind the emergence of the BJP.
He speaks about the nationalist agenda of the Jana Sangh, the predecessor
of the BJP. According to Vajpayee, the Ayodhya movement in which Sri
Problems and prospects of the BJP in West Bengal 0 8
Ram occupied the center stage, epitomized the cultural heritage of all
Indians, cultural nationalism and unleashed the suppressed aspirations of
the Indians and canalized their nationalist fervour towards nation building. In
the article, Vajpayee goes to the extent of saying that the BJP is dedicated
to the Ram Rajya meaning good governance and that the BJP believes in a
kind of society where every individual, irrespective of caste, religion or sex,
will be equal.
Achin Vanaik22, in an article entitled, 'Communalization of the Indian
Polity' discusses critically how the BJP attempted to fill the space left by the
Congress through communal politics. Professor Vanaik characterizes the
BJP and its affiliates as the practitioners of the fascist politics by inventing
the enemy 'other' and also highlights the dangers the communal politics
poses to the plural democracy in India.
In an article called, The challenge of Hindu Nationalism : The
Bharatiya Janata Party in Contemporary Indian Politics', Bruce 0 Graham23
dwells on the BJP's origins, doctrines and policies and its strategies and
electoral performance and its meteoric rise banking on its rightward policies
and strategies.
So far as West Bengal is concerned, there are some writings on the
BJP in West Bengal. One such writing is an article entitled , 'BJP's rise as a
mass force' by Ajit Roy 24. In this article, Roy draws our attention to the rise
of the BJP as a mass force in West Bengal in the 1991 Lok Sabha election
and opines that in terms of electoral gain, the electoral performance of the
BJP helped the Left Front by splitting the Congress vote, but in terms of
politics, it posed a great danger to the Left and progressive forces, being the
forces of combined social and political reaction. In an article entitled, 'BJP in
1998 Lok Sabha elections in West Bengal-Transformation of Opposition
Politics', M.Gillan25 discusses the electoral performance, campaign features
and the contributions of the social forces which led to shape the BJP in
West Bengal as an opposition political party. Professor Gillan also states
that the BJP has arrived in West Bengal state politics but the question
remains as to whether the party has made any social and ideological
Problems and prospects of the BJP in West Bengal 0 9
inroads or it is a result of a convergence of a number of short-term political
forces.
In a booklet entitled, Democracy in Peril: A Quarter Century Of
CPI(M)'s Fraud andTerror Raj In West Bengal, Tathagata Roy 26, the former
President of the West Bengal unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party talks about
the fraud and terror by utilizing which the Left Front government in West
Bengal has been in power so far. In another booklet entitled, Da/ 0 Rajniti
(in Bengali), the General Secretary and now the President of the party,
Rahul Sinha 27 stresses the need to create a mentality to carry forward the
party organization in all spheres through the creation of efficient Karyakarta.
Another booklet called, Dalke Panchayat Mukhi 0 Panchayatke Oaf Mukhi
Karun (in Bengali), authored by Amalesh Mishra 28, deals with the nitty-gritty
of the Panchayat system and the need for taking part in this system in order
to gain foothold in rural West Bengal. In a booklet entitled, Voter Rajniti,
Rajnitir Vote (in Bengali), Rahul Sinha 29 has discussed the need for having
knowledge about the techniques of conducting elections and the need for
getting the party workers trained in the tricks of the parties in power. In
another booklet named, Baktabyer Rahasyabhed (in Bengali), Rahul
Sinha30 has stressed the need for delivering good speech. Mr Sinha opines
that the people like to hear appropriate speeches from the leaders. He has
put emphasis on the creation of good speakers in a planned way so as to
root out the forces that try to destroy the sovereignty of the country and also
to drive away the dustbin called the communists.
CHAPTERIZATION
So far as the contents of the study are concerned, they have been
divided into eight chapters. The 'introduction' chapter deals with the
objectives of the study, the hypotheses, the methodology, the review of the
existing literature on the BJP and the Sangh Parivar and the chapterization
of the whole study.
The second Chapter deals with the causes of the emergence of the
Bharatiya Janata Party. This chapter also dwells on the factors which led
Problems and prospects ofthe BJP in West Bengal 0 10
the RSS to think about the formation of a political party - first the Jana
Sangh and then the BJP.
The third Chapter is devoted to analysing the ideological framework
of the BJP. In this chapter, it has been shown that ideologically, the BJP is
bound with the Hindutva ideology of the RSS. The BJP's main ideological
objective is to establish the Hindu Rashtra in India as perceived by
Savarkar, Hedgewar and Golwalkar.
The fourth Chapter deals with the issues and the policies of the BJP.
In this chapter, the issues and the policies of the BJP have been critically
looked at.
The fifth Chapter deals with the organizational structure,
programmes, electoral performances of the BJP in West Bengal and also its
stand on Bangladeshi infiltration.
The sixth Chapter is devoted to discussing the socio-economic and
administrative profile of the District of Burdwan and its two Blocks-
Burdwan-1 and Purbasthali-1. Here it should be mentioned that although in
the title of the Thesis, the Purbasthali-1 Block precedes the Burdwan-1 Block,
the present researcher has analysed the Burdwan-1 Block first followed by
the Purbasthali-1 owing to the relative importance of the former in his entire
study. This chapter also discusses the organizational structure and the
electoral performances of the BJ P both in the District and in the two Blocks.
The seventh Chapter deals with the findings of the field survey of the
two Blocks. This chapter analyses the responses of the respondents of the
two Blocks to the questionnaire put before them during field survey.on the
basis of variables like, gender, religion, caste, economic status and political
affiliation etc. The reasons put forward by the respondents of the two Blocks
in support of their views have also been analysed in a comparative manner.
Finally, the eighth Chapter, that is, the 'conclusion' chapter is
devoted to the summing up of the entire study. This chapter provides the
people's perception of the BJP and the summary and the assessment of the
results of the survey in its entirety. Here, the problems and the prospects of
the BJP in West Bengal have been studied analytically on the basis of the
findings of the two Blocks.
Problems and prospects of the BJP in West Bengal 0 11
References
1. John McGuire and lan Copland (ed~, Hindu Nationalism And Governance,
p. 35.
2. Ibid.
3. A K Ohdedar, Research Methodology, p. 6.
4. Ibid., p. 26.
5. Ibid.
6. B D Graham, Hindu Nationalism and Indian Politics, The Origins and
Development of the Jan a Sangh.
7. Craig Baxter, The Jana Sangh: A Biography of an Indian Political Party.
8. Christrophe Jaffrelot, The Hindu Nationalist Movement and Indian Politics
- 1925 to the 1990s.
9. Yogendra K Malik and VB Singh, Hindu Nationalists in India- The Rise
of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
10. Geeta Puri, Hindutva Politics in India, Genesis, Political Strategies and
Growth of Bharatiya Janata Party.
11. C P Bhambhri, Bharatiya Janata Party- Periphery to Centre.
12. A G Noorani, The RSS and the BJP- A Division of Labour.
13. Christrophe Jaffrelot (ed.), Hindu Nationalism: A Reader.
14. Partha Banerjee, In the Belly of The Beasts: The Supermacist RSS And
BJP of India- An Insiders View.
15. Katharine Adeney and Lawrence Saez ( ed.), Coalition Politics and Hindu
Nationalism.
16. David Ludden (ed), Making India Hindu: Religion Community and the
Politics of Democracy in India.
17. G N S Raghavan, A New Era in The Indian Polity- A Study of Atal Bihari
Vajpayee and the BJP.
18. John McGuire and lan Copland, (ed~, Hindu Nationalism and
Governance.
19. Ghosh, Partha, S. BJP and the evolution of Hindu Nationalism - From
Periphery to Centre.
20. Achin Vanaik, Communalism Contested: Religion, Modernity and
Secularization.
21. Atal Behari Vajpayee, 'The BJP's Onward March' Frontline, August 22,
1997.
Problems and prospects ofthe BJP in West Bengal 0 12
22. Achin Vanaik, 'Communalization of the Indian Polity', in Peter Ronald de
Souza and E Sridharan (ed~ India's Political Parties.
23. Bruce D Graham, 'The Challenge of Hindu Nationalism: The Bharatiya
Janata Party in Contemporary Indian Politics', in Peter Ronald de Souza
and E Sridharan (ed) India's Political Parties.
24. Ajit Roy, BJP's Rise as a Mass Force, Economic and Political Weekly,
June 29, 1991, Vol. XXVI, No. 26.
25. Michael Gillan, 'BJP in 1998 Lok Sabha Elections in West Bengal:
Transformation of Opposition Politics', in Economic and Political Weekly,
September 5-12, 1998.
26. Tathagata Roy, Democracy In Peril.
27. Rahul Sinha, Oaf 0 Rajniti (in Bengali).
28. Amalesh Mishra, Dalke Panchayat Mukhi 0 Panchayatke Oaf Mukhi
Karun (in Bengali).
29. Rahul Sinha, Voter Rajniti, Rajnitir Vote (in Bengali).
30. Rahul Sinha, Baktabyer Rahasyabhed (in Bengali).
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