Politics: After Sengol, BJP attempted with Nataraja statue to come over south turf

      ‘Lotus blooming’ is still a long-awaited project in Tamil Nadu, even after several attempts made by the BJP to come over the fortress of the south, including the party’s victory over the gateway to the region i.e. Karnataka, years ago. 

‘Natraja’ statue at G20 Summit venue ‘Bharat Nandapam’. (Screenshot via PM Narendra Modi YouTube)

       Always-unconquered south has been striking back, even in the Sultanate and Mughal periods, whenever it was targeted by the reigning capital Delhi. It was also out of control from British rule. 

        BJP’s efforts to get entry in the south battlefield by a different way are the latest in the row. 

        Installation of ‘sengol’ in the Parliament House is one of the symbolic bids by the BJP-led central government and putting up the Nataraj statue at the G20 Summit venue ‘Bharat Mandapam’, is the second one. A ‘swayamsevak’ (RSS volunteer) said to me that this real symbolism will fill the cultural and civilisational gap between the south and the north. And, when the gap will be filled, the turf will be easy to contest in the electoral playground.

         His statement has reason to believe that the BJP with its mother organisation RSS has been endeavouring with this way since its inception in the 1980s to expand its support base to the region where the party has already been at margin. Remembering, how BJP expanded its wings to the eastern states of India, where the party was historically weak. With social engineering, mergers with regional parties and specially ventures by the associate organisations of RSS, the saffron party are in power in all the North Eastern states and a leading opposition party in Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal.

        To be a true national party, the BJP should have a strong cadre and deep ground support in the south, particularly in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Both states are especially tough to be electorally triumphed by the saffron party because of the less chance of religious polarisation and radicalisation, where ‘Dravida’ politics and high philosophy-based left governments are respectively in power. ‘Dravida’ beliefs make the politics of BJP’s ‘Hindutva’ unfit in Tamil Nadu. Until the ‘Hindutva’ will not go parallel to ‘Dravida’ dogma, the party’s dream will be only in vain. 

        But, BJP chose another way to get entry in the state i.e. the expansion of soft ‘Hindutva’ with the rise of local leaders. Lately, Aggressive rhetoric by the party against the controversial remarks by Tamil Nadu Minister Udaynidhi Stalin over ‘Sanatan Dharma’ is one part of its strategy and promoting former IPS officer as party’s state chief K Annamalai as a local leader is another.

        By this approach, the BJP has achieved a relative success in the recent urban body polls in the state. Out of the 12,838 seats across municipal corporations, municipalities, and town panchayats, the BJP fielded candidates in 5,400, and won a total of 308 with 9.26 lakh votes — 5.4 per cent of the total vote share — in the polls. 

        “If the trend of gaining vote percentage in Tamil Nadu goes on and the BJP’s approach continues, the saffron party will lead the state”, an another ‘swayamsewak’ said in a gossip, adding, “wherever there is a tough ground, RSS and its associates grow easily and rapidly.”