HARI OM Will a kingmaker be the next king? Vivekanand Jha, an author and a Political columnist Amit Shah is the man of the match: Prime minister Narendra Modi In view of Narendra Modis staunch backing and having the age by his side, the new Chanakya of Indian politics, Amit Shah is all set to be the next Prime minister after 2024. The oxymoron of Chandragupta-Chanakya saga is on full play Politics is the game of strange twists and turns. A man who has been hogging the limelight suddenly finds himself in oblivion, whereas a man little known finds himself being the cynosure of all eyes. Indian politics is no exception to this rule, in fact it far more in sync with the above stated political dictum., How Keshubhai Patel, who was a key player in Gujarat politics, suddenly one fine morning discovered himself on the political periphery and, to his utter horror, discovered that the central place was being occupied by a man who was little known political player in the state of Gujarat, Narendra Modi. And the same fact was played even at the national level when a little known player beyond Gujarat, pitchforked himself on to the central stage of national politics which finally culminated in his donning the Prime ministerial hat. Who would have predicted in 2007-08 that Narendra Modi, the Chief Minister of Gujarat, will become the Prime minister of India in 2014? Indeed, politics is no less a game of glorious uncertainties than the game of cricket. As in case of Modi, so is the case of his protege, Amit Shah. The rise of Narendra Modi in the national political firmament could not be singular phenomenon without having Amit Shah on board. And therefore, it was a joint foray into the national politics by the duo where both could either swim ashore together, or would sink in the company of each other. For, there was hardly a salvation for one without the other. Consequently, soon after Narendra Modi was anointed as the BJPs Prime ministerial candidate, Amit Shahs rise was a foregone conclusion, for Modi could trust none but his close associate for the fulfillment of his national ambition, especially when there was the situation revealing many a slip between a cup and the lip. In other words, it was a make or break game for Modi with the detractors ready to pull the rugs from under his feet. Modi knew that the task of catapulting himself to power in Delhi durbar was easier said than done, especially when his nomination had ruffled so many feathers. He could trust none outside his own close power citadel in Gujarat to bring a turn around at the national level. And the states that really mattered for his national ambitions were uttarpradesh and Bihar. Significantly, for doing wonders Modi needed some exceptional strategist who could be his very own man and simultaneously can deliver maximum seats for him in these states. In fact there were strategists in BJP working in Uttarpradesh and Bihar, but they were not Modis trusted men. And naturally Amit Shah readily fitted the bill as a trusted aid and a master strategist who had already delivered in the past for Modi and could be trusted to do the wonders for Modi again at a broader macro level. Still, Modi had a dilemma: Amit Shah was facing the trial in a famous Sohrabuddin case where he was accused of a police encounter leading to the death of an innocent man; Amit Shah was arrested in that case and was eventually granted bail on the ground that he would not stay in Gujarat; Modi could readily depute him to take charge of uttarpradesh but couldnt it dent the image of Modi at the national level was the cause of concern? Modi must have weighed the pros and cons of the issue, however given his absolute and unqualified faith in that man alone appeared to be the most pragmatic step at the given point in time and, therefore, he was reconciled to take the bet on Shah. Thus, Amit Shah walked into the national political landscape as a little known man outside Gujarat but a respected leader since Modi had his trust placed in him. Interestingly, little did anyone know then that the man who was sent on errand in Uttarpradesh would be the man of the BJP for the future and potentially a man to lead the country in a next decade or so. It is widely reported that Amit Shah is an ardent devotee of Indias greatest political thinker, Chanakya, whose views have deeply impressed Shah. Hence like Chanakya, he goes by the inputs derived from the grass root and prima facie has his inputs from authentic sources. it is also said that in the 2014 Lok Sabha election, Amit Shahs ground work was so meticulous that he had fastidiously prepared his own permutations and combinations as to the scopes of the winnability of the candidates and, therefore, based on his detailed estimates, many aspirants were eventually denied the tickets. Amit Shahs performance in this Lok Sabha election has been incredible: winning 71 seats for the BJP and even contributing the total tally of 73 seats for the party was an unprecedented in the electoral history of this country. Shah was reported to have closely worked with Dharmendra Pradhan, in charge of Bihar who too, performed well in the election. The highly indebted BJP , which became apparent when BJP formed the government at the centre with Narendra Modi at the helm, catapulted Amit Shah at the helm. But then, Amit Shah has a greater challenge ahead of him: with the impending assembly elections of four states confronting him, he has to ensure that BJP comes out with the flying colours. And this may not be a cakewalk, for Laloo and Nitish already stitching an alliance against BJP, Shah has to be at his wits end to manage a victory for BJP in Bihar, especially when the people are still fighting against the price rise of food grains. But Amit Shah is no ordinary strategist, he is capable of pulling the victory even from the jaws of defeat. He will not let Laloo and Nitish have a jolly good time together. Amit Shah has undoubtedly played the role of a kingmaker in 2014 election victory of BJP which is acknowledged by the BJP, for there was hardly a voice of opposition to his elevation as the BJP President. Even Rajnath Singh, who was keen to retain the BJP presidency, did not object to Amit Shahs elevation, is a glowing tribute to a man who is respected across the BJP for his vision and mastery over the real politik. The die is cast now for his next promotion to the position of the next Prime minister of India if BJP continues to perform well under Modi. He will be the most likely choice of Modi for the coveted post as his successor, however, the pending Sohrabuddin case is the only dampener which may spoil his party. But Shah boldly claims that he has been implicated in this case by his rivals and, if it is so, he is likely to get a clean chit from the trial court. Shah has even his age by his side: he is only 50 and expected to be in his sixty after a decade to comfortably step into the shoes of his mentor as and when he decides to quit. But the moot point is: whether Chanakya, he adores so much and even follows him in practice, will ever step into the shoes of Chandragupta Maurya? But here is an oxymoron twist too: Amit Shah is a Chanakya to his mentor Narendra Modi who has donned the role of Chandragupta, why should then Amit Shah, even being a Chanakya, have any objection to stepping into the shoes of his mentor, Chandragupta? Jai Hind Vivekanand Jha
Posted on: Mon, 18 Aug 2014 12:49:42 +0000
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