Modi To Have Free Hand In Both Govt And Party

NEW DELHI: Amid fierce lobbying for ministerial berths by BJP aspirants, RSS on Sunday claimed that it will not interfere with government formation, in a clear signal that Narendra Modi has a free hand in picking his team and that anxious seniors need to settle their claims with the PM-elect rather than bank on the Sangh to intercede on their behalf.

Articulating the RSS position, Sangh leader Ram Madhav said, "Sangh has not given any guidelines to BJP after its historic victory in Lok Sabha polls, nor to Modiji... RSS never keeps any remote control to perform any role in politics and government."

However, Madhav said the Sangh may give suggestions, and expects the government to be sensitive to the Parivar’s ideological orientation. "People's representatives who won in Lok Sabha polls are aware of the Sangh's ideology and they know how to do work and take forward its ideology. There is no way that RSS would interfere in government's functioning and politics. However, if required, Sangh may give suggestions," he said.

The Sangh’s "clarification" came amid BJP leaders including Ananth Kumar, Rajiv Pratp Rudy and Harsh Vardhan being seen at RSS’s Delhi headquarters and hectic lobbying for ministerial berths ahead of Modi being sworn in as PM.

Acknowledging speculation that RSS will have a big role in BJP affairs, particularly as it threw its might behind the Modi campaign, Madhav told the media in Jaipur, "This is common cause of concern for people, specially Congress who want to know what would RSS do next."

He added, "The same question was posed to Atal Bihari Vajpayee, to which the former PM replied saying he himself was a direct remote control."

The stand and its articulation in public is seen as significant in view of the estimate, as reported by TOI last week, that finding slots for the veteran duo of L K Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi may be problematic in view of their stature and might require intervention by the RSS. The presence of senior RSS leaders, except its chief Mohanrao Bhagwat, in Delhi, has led many to believe that the parent saffron outfit may be willing to umpire differences over the choice of portfolios, especially the seniors.

Madhav’s statement was meant to dispel the perception and to drive home the fact that Modi’s call on portfolios will be final.

In the light of the RSS stance, seniors like Advani and Joshi may have to go along with the consensus within the party’s top ranks. The party does not seem inclined to consider Advani for the Lok Sabha Speaker’s post.

The view that Modi will be free to choose his Cabinet and decide on the claims of leaders to portfolios was echoed by senior BJP sources who said all decisions will have to be taken on party forums.

The scale of BJP’s mandate of 282 seats in Lok Sabha and NDA’s tally of 336 MPs seems to have effectively sealed any possibility of Modi’s authority being challenged and limited jockeying within the party.

Sources said the RSS position that it will be available "only for consultation" suits the temperament of Bhagwat, claiming that contrary to the allegations, he does not believe in micro-managing BJP.

In fact, after being in Delhi on Thursday, Bhagwat left on pre-scheduled tour of south India and is due to be in Delhi only towards the end of June.

The RSS chief is understood to be keen that Sangh turn its attention back to its organizational activities after having been part of a campaign aimed at boosting the turnout of voters, a strategy it felt would help Modi.

It remains to be seen if Joshi does make it to the Cabinet. Sources said while seniority and contribution will be a factor in the selection of candidates, individual leaders will not be able to leverage their "stature" to claim a particular ministry.

"If some leaders feel they have a claim to ministries represented in the Cabinet Committee on Security, they could be mistaken," said a BJP leader.

Modi is not expected to be unmindful of the party and Sangh’s estimate of aspirants, and will consult senior leaders despite the near-universal interpretation of the mandate as an endorsement of his leadership. However, his views on the suitability of leaders for posts and ministries can be expected to carry weight even as he takes care of working through the Sangh’s networks.