Shah says politicians should retire at 60, then clarifies

Under criticism from elders for his handling of the party affairs during the Bihar Assembly polls, BJP president Amit Shah extrapolated from the life of late RSS ideologue Nanaji Deshmukh to propose that people aged over 60 retire from politics and take to social service. He was speaking at a function at Chitrakoot, where Deshmukh launched welfare activities.

Embattled by criticism by party elders over his handling of the party before and during the Bihar polls, BJP President Amit Shah extrapolated from the life of late RSS ideologue Nanaji Deshmukh to take pot shots at the veterans.

Speaking at a function at Chitrakoot in Uttar Pradesh, where Deshmukh founded some social service initiatives, Mr. Shah referred to Deshmukh’s view that people over 60 years should retire from politics, and take to social service as he (Deshmukh) did.

“Nanaji presented an example to all politicians, that one should not remain in active politics after the age of 60. After that age, one should work towards the uplift of rural society and villages. Nanaji was here and he had indeed led by example,” he said.

Mr. Shah has been put on the mat by elders within the BJP after the party was trounced in the Assembly polls in Bihar. Party veterans L.K. Advani, Yashwant Sinha, Murli Mamohar Joshi and Shanta Kumar held Mr. Shah responsible for the Bihar debacle.

They accused the party high command of having “emasculated” the party organisation, forcing all to “kow-tow” to the party leadership -- that is – Mr. Shah.

The statement set off ripples in the party and has split the party on how to deal with this issue.

Mr. Shah had relegated two of these seniors -- Mr. Advani and Mr. Joshi -- to a defunct committee called the Margdarshak Mandal that hasn’t met since it was constituted. Some leaders within the party now such as Home Minister Rajnath Singh want that the criticism levelled by the elders to be taken on board, while others, like Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu have taken the line that the elders should have articulated the criticism at a suitable forum.

Mr. Shah, for his part, seems to have reminded the elders that while they may have some homilies for him, he is still of the opinion that that they are past the age to run things in the party.

Amit Shah clarifies

After remarks by him, that people over 60 should not be active in politics surfaced, BJP president Amit Shah sent out a clarification that he meant the remark only in the context of late RSS ideologue Nanaji Deshmukh's life and not as a general prescription for current members of the party.

Read More

Show restraint, EC tells parties as Bihar polls near

As the level of the campaign for the Bihar Assembly polls deteriorated into personal attacks, the State Election Commission has sent a letter to all political parties to show restraint while commenting on rivals.

State Chief Electoral Officer K. Ajay Kumar’s letter expressed “anguish and serious concern about the plummeting levels of political speeches made by various political party leaders and candidates in the ongoing general elections in Bihar.”

“The tone and tenor of the political speeches have been found to be calculated to cause mutual hatred, disharmony or ill-will and aimed to aggravate the differences between different political parties and classes of citizens on the grounds of religion, caste and community which the Model Code of Conduct dissuades the political parties and candidates [from]”, said the EC letter.

Slide in discourse

The discourse has seen an unedifying slide from Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief fat-shaming BJP president Amit Shah when the latter got stuck in a lift in Patna, saying “such a bulky man should not get into lifts” to Mr. Shah calling attention to Mr. Lalu Prasad’s conviction by a CBI special court in the fodder scam by terming him a “chaara chor (fodder thief).

Mr. Shah was termed a “nar bhakshi” or cannibal, again by Mr. Lalu Prasad and he was in turn termed as someone who consorted with the devil by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

On Friday, Mr. Prasad took things a little further. “If I’m devil, PM Modi is brahm pisaach [demon] and I know the medicine to drive this demon from Bihar,” he said.

Eclipse of ideology blamed for fall in standards

As the level of the campaign for the Bihar Assembly polls deteriorated into personal attacks, experts attributed the fall in standards to the eclipse of political ideology. According to Saibal Gupta, founder of the Asian Development Research Institute, there have been acrimonious elections in Bihar in the past, but none with this kind of rhetoric.

“This is commensurate with the eclipse of ideology in political parties. Earlier one would refer to rivals being ‘capitalist so and so’ or pseudo socialist or something, now levels of personal accusation have reached the lowest level, since parties have moved beyond ideology to promoting families, etc,” he said.

The tangled history of the broken alliances in Bihar, between the BJP and the Janata Dal (U) and the RJD and the Ram Vilas Paswan-led Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) haven’t helped much.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi perhaps termed it best on Friday morning in Aurangabad, when he said that political parties were scouring dictionaries to find more swear words to use against him. By the time the fifth phase of polling rolls around, that may yet become redundant.

editpag.blogspot.com

Read More

Modi breaks silence on Dadri lynching

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, speaking at an election rally in Nawada, Bihar, on Thursday, broke his eight-day silence on the lynching of Mohammad Akhlaqin Dadri, Uttar Pradesh.

Akhlaq was beaten to death by a mob which suspected him of having stored and consumed beef. Several members of the BJP are among the suspects in the case.

Mr. Modi, who had come under criticism for failing to speak up on the issue or restrain his party leaders from making incendiary statements, referred to President Pranab Mukherjee’s statement just a day before, to drive home his point.

“I have said it earlier too. Hindus should decide whether to fight Muslims or poverty. Muslims have to decide whether to fight Hindus or poverty. Both need to fight poverty together. The country has to stay united, only communal harmony and brotherhood will take the nation forward. People should ignore controversial statements made by politicians, as they are doing so for political gains.”

However Mr. Modi’s remarks were met with criticism. Former J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah tweeted why there was no outright condemnation of the Dadri lynching.

Modi targets Lalu Prasad

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while addressing an election rally in Nawada, Bihar on Thursday, emphasized that only communal harmony and brotherhood could take the country forward.

Citing President Pranab Mukherjee’s speech a day before, Mr. Modi said: “Mr. Mukherjee’s message is the best guidance we can get as a nation. We should follow the path shown by the President,” he said.

Mr. Mukherjee, speaking at a book release function, had said, “We can’t allow the core values of our civilization to be wasted. The core values are that over the years, civilization celebrated diversity, promoted and advocated tolerance, enjoyed plurality.” Reactions to Mr. Modi’s comments were, however, critical as being too little, too late. “It took a few days, but our Honorable Prime Minister finally broke his silence. We didn’t get an outright condemnation, but at least something is better than nothing,” said former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, on Twitter.

Former Union Minister R.P.N. Singh said: “The Prime Minister should come forward and speak on it, instead of just condemning it and giving it new twists.”

At the rallies in Munger and Begusarai earlier, Mr. Modi launched a frontal attack on Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Lalu Prasad, charging him with betraying the Yadavs, with his claim that some Hindus did consume beef.

He told the crowds that Mr. Prasad should not be absolved of his “beef remark” even though he had claimed that it was the “devil” that had made him say it.

“I want to know how the shaitan got his address. He recognizes that it was the shaitan, just as people recognize their relatives,” Mr. Modi said.

http://editpag.blogspot.in/

Read More