The BJP has at last decided to drop its albatross, Nitin Gadkari. Veteran Rajnath Singh replaces him as the party president. It is a retreat for the RSS which backed Gadkari despite his financial skullduggery. The Sangh had forced the party to amend its constitution last year to ensure Gadkari got a second term. But that is not to be. Rajnath Singh, however, is not a challenge to the RSS. It seems that the BJP is back to square one. Gadkari had replaced Rajnath Singh as the BJP president in 2009. Singh’s tenure was marked by the BJP’s defeat in Uttar Pradesh and at the Centre. It cannot be said that the present change signifies the party’s triumph over the RSS. The notable feature in the process of change-over was the principled stand taken by elder statesman L.K. Advani. He had emphasized his opposition to Gadkari’s reelection as party president. First, Gadkari smelt of corruption. Second, he stood for RSS ascendancy over its political arm, the BJP. Advani’s credentials were unquestionable. He resigned from the 10th Lok Sabha when he was charged by the CBI in the hawala case and promised not to stand for election until he was cleared. Again, when he spoke of M.A. Jinnah’s secularism, he refused to submit to RSS pressure.
Rajnath Singh’s record is not unimpeachable. In fact, it is singularly uninspiring. Circumstances have brought him back to the office of party president. The question is whether he will strike a balance between the party and the RSS or whether he will be on the beaten track. Narendra Modi, the party’s likely Prime Ministerial candidate in the 2014 general election is understandably delighted with Gadkari’s exit. The ignominy of the BJP’s defeat in Karnataka in the Assembly elections in 2013 needs to be lived down. Now, the nation expects a battle royal between young Rahul Gandhi and the old warrior, Narendra Modi.