As winter session washout looms, how BJP MPs have Opposition on backfoot
In cricket, the best way to counter aggressive batters is to push them on the backfoot and leave them with little room to play anything but defensive. The analogy fits well in Indian politics currently, with the ruling BJP deploying a similar tactic against the Opposition in Parliament as their heated contest threatens to reduce the ongoing winter session to a washout.
The BJP came into the session with bolstered confidence from back-to-back election victories in two states, first Haryana in October and then Maharashtra the following month. The wins not only gave the party the right to continue governing these states for another term but also fired up its aggression against the Opposition in Parliament.
The winter session, which began on November 25, culminates on December 20. Parliament will convene next only in January-end for the budget session.
In the elections, the BJP effectively dealt with Opposition narratives, such as on ‘national caste census’, ‘reservations’ and ‘threat to the Constitution’, and came out reassured about its Hindutva card and the party’s ability to take electoral messages to the voters. The weak links flagged after its below-than-expected performance in the Lok Sabha polls—in which the party’s tally got contained at 240 seats despite the clarion ‘400 paar’ (over 400 seats) call—were quickly addressed and the leadership was game enough to effect course-corrections.
The next challenge, then, was to push political opponents to the backfoot and set its own narratives. The best way, the BJP think-tank assessed, was to get uber-aggressive. This has been amply visible during the winter session as BJP MPs deflected Congress onslaughts over billionaire industrialist Gautam Adani by questioning the ‘relationship’ between controversial global businessman George Soros and the Congress and its top leadership.
BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra went to the extent of directly accusing the US State Department of trying to “destabilise India”. The party also alleged that the US “deep state” was working to “target Prime Minister Narendra Modi”.
Patra ticked off the Soros-backed Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) for making “baseless charges” that lacked a “shred of evidence”. He cited a French media report to claim that OCCRP was funded by the US Agency for International Development and “other deep state figures”.
While the US Embassy in New Delhi said it was “disappointing that the ruling party in India would make these kinds of accusations”, the BJP’s political purpose had been served, its accusation of involvement of the US “deep state” allowing the party to play to the gallery at home.
In the past four years, the BJP-RSS cadre has nursed a grudge against the US Democrats for not taking what they think is credible action against Khalistan elements. Also, Meena Harris, niece of vice-president Kamala Harris, coming out in open support of the farm unions protesting in Delhi—she had to be ticked off—did not go down well with the cadre and leaders, neither did Democrats opposing India’s amendments to its citizenship laws, the abrogation of Article 370 concerning Jammu and Kashmir, or the Ram Temple’s construction in Ayodhya.
The Modi government saw it all as interference in India’s internal affairs. Soros, who has deep relations with several Democrats and their donors—too become a figure of zero tolerance. After Patra’s comments linking Soros to the US “deep state”, BJP spokespersons, however, didn’t nudge the US establishment or rake up “deep state” theories.
But the BJP kept up the offensive on Soros to counter the principal Opposition rival Congress and its top leadership, particularly in the backdrop of Rahul Gandhi’s attempts to link the Adani Group’s business interests with Modi.
In the previous Parliament session, the Congress had made a lot of noise over issues such as caste census, the underrepresentation of backward communities in the country’s bureaucratic set-up, Adani and the sectarian violence in Manipur. For the winter session too, the Congress had plans to mount an offensive by cornering the government on Adani and Manipur, where violence has escalated again. But the BJP appears to have come ready with its set of bodyline deliveries.
Usually, it is the Opposition that forces adjournments and keeps the government under pressure during parliamentary sessions. But such has been BJP MPs’ aggression that the treasury benches have kept the Opposition cornered for the whole past week of the winter session. The Congress tried to mount an offensive on the ruling party by moving a no-confidence motion against Rajya Sabha chairman and India’s vice-president Jagdeep Dhankhar.
But that didn’t reduce the pace of BJP speedsters. Their bouncers had the Congress stumped, especially when some INDIA allies, such as the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Samajwadi Party (SP), didn’t side much on the Adani issue. The TMC, SP and also the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) are unhappy with the Congress over electoral arrangements within the INDIA bloc in the recent assembly polls. They have been joined in by Lalu Prasad Yadav as his Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) prepares for the Bihar assembly polls due next September-October.
While the winter session may end without transacting much of legislative business, the BJP appears to have pitched its bouncers well on the parliamentary pitch against the Opposition. The Congress will not only have to regroup itself but be nimble-footed enough to play the ruling party’s swingers and yorkers. It is unlikely that the BJP will offer it full-toss deliveries.
