Bringing differences to the public domain : State BJP caught in a reverse wave
- Sangai Express Editorial :: February 22, 2014 -

It is a wave, but a wave which stands in sharp contradiction to the NaMo wave which is sweeping across some parts of the country, with Manipur having tasted the same on February 8, when Mr Narendra Modi addressed one of the biggest election rallies at Langjing Achouba ground.

More than 10 days down the line and a reverse wave seems to have affected the State BJP, at least as of now, if the demand raised by some party members of the State unit BJP to remove Th Chaoba from the post of the president is anything to go by.

The demand to remove Th Chaoba from his chair rests on the alleged premise that he is favouring a particular aspirant for the party's ticket in the Inner Manipur Parliamentary Constituency.

Whether the allegations are true or not is not central to the commentary here, but what is important to note is that the differences within the BJP coming to the fore can only be to the advantage of the other political parties, especially the Congress.

A point which all 'original' BJP members should take note of. To the keen observers, the significance of using the term, 'original' will not be lost for in more than one way, the open 'revolt' against Mr Th Chaoba is a reflection of a disparate group of people coming together under the umbrella of the BJP, especially in the wake of the NaMo wave as well as the manner in which the Congress has been pushed to a corner in different parts of the country.

The State BJP Mahila Morcha has already washed its hands off the open revolt against the leadership of Th Chaoba, but this is more like a damage control exercise for the damage has already been inflicted.

How deep is the cut will be known only when the result of the Lok Sabha election is announced but there is no denying that the State unit of the BJP has scored an own goal, somewhat similar to what Mr Rahul Gandhi did when he gave his first TV interview to Arnab Goswami of Times Now, some time back.

It does not need a political pundit to predict that a divided house will never be able to win the trust and confidence of the people and in coming out in the open and demanding the ouster of Th Chaoba on some allegations or charges, the protestors are not doing the BJP any good. With no real grass root workers and without a single MLA in the House of 60, the BJP rose from the ashes and is today deemed to be the main challenger to the Congress in Manipur.

This is notable, but the need to exercise the devil from within should be realised by all those who claim themselves to be BJP supporters or active workers of the party.

Differences within a political party is not unique to the BJP, but to a large extent it depends on how the inner differences are sorted out without bringing them to the public domain.

If the process of choosing, nominating or naming the candidates can create such sharp differences so much so that these differences are brought out in the public domain, then one can imagine when the name of the candidate is finally announced.

Will it lead to further polarisation within the party and see rebel candidates coming up to eat into the vote banks of the party ?

Given the manner in which the demand to remove Mr Th Chaoba was raised, this is a distinct possibility.

For all his political experience, having donned many a mantle, it remains to be seen how the man who put Utlou on the political map of Manipur, deal with the issue and ensure that the State BJP stays intact and the inner differences do not come out on the public domain.

Many a time the devil within has proved to be the bigger nemesis than the devil outside.

The acid test for Mr Chaoba starts now.