The Hindu : On the margins

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 09, 2003

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On the margins

In Kerala, the BJP is wooing the tribals and the Dalits but their numbers are small. Roy Mathew reports.

MAKING A dent in Kerala's bi-polar polity — dominated by the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) and the Left Democratic Front (LDF) — is proving an uphill task for the BJP. So, now it is turning to segments outside the mainstream, the tribals and the Dalits.

The party's State executive met in Kasaragod last month and decided to push the Hindutva agenda among the under privileged — a departure from the policy of the past few years.

The BJP in the State had been keeping its doors open to all political parties, their splinter groups and social groups. But its main targets were the Nair Service Society (NSS) and the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP), caste-based social organisations of the Nairs and the Ezhavas enjoying significant political clout. However, the strategy did not work out well.

At Kasaragod, the party decided that it would work more closely with the Sangh Parivar. As divisions persist in the State unit over various issues, efforts would be made to choose a president by consensus during the coming organisational elections to spearhead the new strategy. However, party leaders acknowledge that given the small population of tribals and Dalits, the party cannot make much headway without attracting other social groups also into its fold.

The caste-based social groups have reason to be apprehensive as a pan-Hindu movement would reduce their relevance.

So far, the NSS has not been averse to the activities of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) in colleges run by it. However, recently it thwarted a VHP function to be attended by the Union Minister of State, O. Rajagopal, at one of its colleges by declaring a holiday for the institution.

The SNDP leader, Vellappally Natesan, at best, has been ambivalent. The message he conveys is that the SNDP does not find any merit in having a political alliance with anyone unless there are tangible benefits.

However, the BJP sees a silver lining in the Malabar Maha Sangamom organised by the SNDP and the themes discussed there.

It was happy that the SNDP was making an incursion into the Malabar area, a Marxist stronghold, after the Yogam's relations with the CPI(M) ruptured. Besides, declarations were made at the Sangamom against "forced conversions" and "minority appeasement". The Vanavasi Sangamom (gathering of tribals) held by an RSS-backed organisation in Wayanad also received good response.

The BJP is also hoping to cash in on the religious revivalism in the State where Hindu Sanyasins are attracting an increased following.

The recent attack on the American Missionary, Joseph Cooper, allegedly by RSS workers also yielded an occasion to whip up passions. Expansion of the NDA in the State is also part of its strategy. Now, the Samata Party is the only constituent with some workers in the field. There is a problem in aligning with the Shiv Sena in the State, as its workers are mostly those who had quit the BJP.

The Kerala Congress group led by P. C. Thomas has been supporting the Vajpayee Government at the Centre. But, the party has not shared the political platform with the BJP in the State yet. He, like Mr. Natesan, would be interested only if there are viable options. As of now, no viable third front is in sight.

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