The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is grappling with not just the most serious health emergency this country has ever seen, but also an emerging political crisis. For the first time in seven years, there are voices within the ruling party’s ideological and political ecosystems asking tough questions to the government about its preparations for the second wave, the absence of medical infrastructure, and the slow vaccination drive. Supporters of the party — just like other Indian citizens, irrespective of political affiliation — have suffered and lost loved ones, and there is a defensiveness that has crept into the party’s response to the criticism.
In this backdrop, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) supremo Mohan Bhagwat, considered the moral guardian of all Sangh affiliates (of which the BJP is one), and who was infected with Sars-CoV-2 himself last month, made his first public remarks on the second wave. Mr Bhagwat claimed that the government, administration and citizens had all become complacent. But that was, broadly, the limits of his criticism, hedged with how society had to share the blame with the State and repeated encouragement to all citizens to stay positive in these difficult times. Mr Bhagwat’s statement has been interpreted as either the Sangh taking a muted, but adversarial, position to warn the government, or a supportive approach, which takes into account the prevailing public sentiment, but actually underscores the need to stay united behind the government in this battle.
What appears to be the case, though, is that Mr Bhagwat is accommodating the voices of discontent which have emerged from within the Sangh parivar to alert the government about public sentiment — but without upsetting the broader equation between the Sangh and the party. There remains close ideological synergy between the Sangh and the BJP; Sangh functionaries have benefited from an affiliate being in power; and while the Sangh would like the government to be more proactive, it is clear that it will stick to the government’s broad narrative and not cause public embarrassment and add to its challenges. The BJP will be satisfied with this sign of support, and the party clearly hopes that the mood will shift as the second wave ebbs, but both the Sangh and the government must realise that citizens will continue to yearn for accountability for what has happened.
{{/usCountry}}What appears to be the case, though, is that Mr Bhagwat is accommodating the voices of discontent which have emerged from within the Sangh parivar to alert the government about public sentiment — but without upsetting the broader equation between the Sangh and the party. There remains close ideological synergy between the Sangh and the BJP; Sangh functionaries have benefited from an affiliate being in power; and while the Sangh would like the government to be more proactive, it is clear that it will stick to the government’s broad narrative and not cause public embarrassment and add to its challenges. The BJP will be satisfied with this sign of support, and the party clearly hopes that the mood will shift as the second wave ebbs, but both the Sangh and the government must realise that citizens will continue to yearn for accountability for what has happened.
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