Punjab bullying, Bengal bloodsport… is BJP’s ‘long game’ worth playing?

When Narendra Modi rode back to power in 2019 with a bigger majority, a dispirited Opposition had very few choices. It stared at its unelectable, battered self in the mirror and licked its wounds. Soon, its worst fears were coming true. Parliament outlawed instant triple talaq, took away Kashmir’s special status which fomented separatism and militancy, and brought the Citizenship Amendment Act. Under the Modi government, a civilisation was turning around after centuries of invasions and colonial rule. The so-called ‘idea of India’ in which Hindus acquiesce to violence, demographic takeover, and social, cultural and economic dominance for ‘secular’ politicians to get minority votes was crumbling before their eyes. The Opposition could see just one roadmap. If you can’t rule from Parliament, rule the streets. It is an attractive template for somebody who has no hope of democratic success. Create violent anarchy. Activate your media and academic ecosystem in India and abroad to play the victim and portray Modi and Hindus as fascists. Unleash violence to provoke the BJP and its supporters into responding with force. If they do, showcase it with words like ‘genocide’ and ‘holocaust’. The Modi regime understands this well. To avoid the perception trap, it embarked on an aggressive passivity, a strategy of infinite patience. The Opposition tasted blood with the anti-CAA and anti-farm law protests and Bengal post-poll violence. It discovered that even the naked dance of anarchy at Shaheen Bagh, Singhu border, Red Fort or all across Bengal will not move the Modi government into tough action. It even made the prime minister back down on the farm laws with an apology. That, in turn, emboldens the Opposition cadre. The BJP hopes to make the Opposition’s aggression backfire. It believes the Congress TMC, AAP, Shiv Sena and other parties are exposing themselves further to the Indian voters’ wrath.

Does that game plan work? What are the arguments for and against it? First, it does expose the Opposition’s violent streak and desperation. It makes it clear to voting Indians who the real fascists are. From throwing Republic TV editor Arnab Goswami into jail to arresting BJP activist Tajinder Bagga and assaulting their families, it is evident who cares about press and individual freedom. It erodes the Opposition’s credibility every day in the eyes of the silent majority. Second, it makes the Opposition more dependent on the minorities, instigating a section of Muslims into playing to their incendiary stereotype, and further consolidating the Hindu vote behind the BJP. The recent string of attacks on Hindu festivals across India is an example. Third, it allows the BJP an unsentimental, potent response at the time of its choosing. Angry, vengeful reactions usually lead to mistakes. And fourth, it quietly invites the opponent to get bolder, more tyrannical and commit a mistake. But is that all? What are the downsides of this long rope of patience? Your own cadre begins to lose the heart and liver to fight. In a state like Bengal, where even today — when Home Minister Amit Shah is on his first visit to the state after the loss in the 2021 Assembly elections — we find BJP worker Arjun Chaurasia allegedly killed and hung, an all-too-familiar sight in Mamata Banerjee’s TMC-ruled Bengal. The intensity of the post-poll violence in the state and the lack of any forceful action from the other side is enough to demoralise party workers and ideologically committed supporters to desert in large numbers. Dharna, candlelight vigils and peaceful representations cannot hold out against guns, rods, and swords for long. The TMC-backed jihadi underbelly particularly targets the most vulnerable — women, Dalits, tribals — to drive the terror in. Second, disproportionate patience against violence makes citizens lose faith in the rule of law. It starts becoming evident that the BJP is playing good only to create sympathy and political capital. It does not care whether a critical highway is blocked for a year or hundreds of innocent keep getting raped and killed. Third, lack of state action emboldens the worst parasitic and predatory creatures in society. A problem today becomes four times that tomorrow when you allow it to fester and flourish. In balance, the BJP’s long game is indeed effective and perhaps a crucial way for it to stay in power and make permanent difference. But while the party behaves like a political party, it is important that the government does governance. The government cannot perpetually behave like a political party and vice versa. Even chess requires slaying to get to checkmate. Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram .