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As Modi government turns one, Bihar test awaits Amit Shah

Amit Shah's extensive work leads to BJP's membership figure crossing 10 crore

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A year after the Narendra Modi wave swept the BJP to power helping secure 281 seats in the Lok Sabha, the air is still heady with excitement in the party headquarters at Ashok Road in Delhi, but a tinge of realism has also dawned on leaders and office-bearers.

The party managed to stay on the victory track in Maharashtra, Haryana, Jharkhand and formed a coalition government with the ideological rival Peoples' Democratic Party (PDP) in Jammu and Kashmir. However, the juggernaut came to a jolting halt in Delhi, the darkest spot in the party's annual report, when it managed only three seats against the political greenhorn Aam Aadmi Party (AAP')'s 67. But the biggest challenge of the year, for the party will be the elections in Bihar. An adverse verdict will not only affect the party's morale, but will force the NDA government to relook at priorities and return to populism. .

The other shadow has been the Hindutva rabble-rousers within the party and Sangh Parivar affiliates. With prime minister Narendra Modi, finance minister Arun Jaitley and party chief Amit Shah sending clear signals of their disapproval, these restive elements seem to have finally been quietened, at least of late. Modi, according to sources, is understood to have conveyed to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) that fringe elements must be reined in.

One year on, the BJP, which had underestimated Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and was even scoffing at him for going abroad on the eve of the Budget session of Parliament, is now getting restive at his pro-activism. In his new avatar after returning from a sabbatical, Rahul's padyatras raising the issues of farmers, land bill and scoffing at government's helping corporates is finding takers. Therefore, BJP leaders seem to have put both Delhi and the demagogues behind to unleash steps taken by the Modi government for inclusive growth and counters the opposition campaign on issues like the land acquisition bill. "The party has been able to generate goodwill due to the installation of a popular government in Delhi," said party vice president Vinay Sahasrabuddhe.

Congress spokesman Abhishek Singhvi says their party takes pride that for quite some time now, the defining characteristic of BJP has been 'anti-Rahulism. "That means they do take him very seriously and are insecure because the issues raised by Rahul are having enormous resonance with people," he said. The energised Opposition apart, the BJP over last one year has become the central pole of Indian politics. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley maintains that anti-BJPism is becoming a rallying factor for other parties, the position once held by the Congress in national politics. He said the party's efforts to win the Bihar elections have become easier because of the uneasiness and frustration among the opponents. He dubbed as "impractical" attempts by the parties like Rashtriya Janata Dal and Janata Dal(U) cobble up a coalition against the BJP.

The party leaders, however, feel that the flagship schemes of the Modi government need to be taken to ground for electoral gains. The Bihar election, which will put to test the centre's economic agenda, could end up being a Modi government versus Nitish Kumar government battle. Next year, there will be elections in West Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu-- states where BJP is desperately trying to make inroads.

In 2017, Shah will face a bigger electoral test in Uttar Pradesh, a state where the party won 72 of 80 seats in the Lok Sabha elections. It was Shah's astute strategy and the Modi wave that had captured Uttar Pradesh. But, over the past year, the party has lost around 10 bypolls in the state. Earlier this month, the BJP lost the Pharenda Assembly bypoll in Maharajganj to the Samajwadi Party (SP). What is more worrying is that the Congress candidate was number two.

Shah, who took over the reins of the party last July, has travelled extensively across the country visiting each and every state. "He has energised the party rank and file," said party leader Balashankar, who is in the panel for training newcomers in the membership drive. With the membership figure crossing 10 crore, the BJP now claims to be the largest political party in the world. "We will build upon this through mass contact programme and training to convert them into karyakartas (party workers)," said Sahasrabuddhe.

Keeping in mind Modi's message at the BJP national executive in Bengaluru last month, the party is striving to be a cohesive instrument for social change by involving itself in schemes like Swachh Bharat and Jan Dhan yojana, a party leader said. The BJP and government have been in complete sync, interdependent and reciprocal.

While RSS affiliates like the Swadeshi Jagran Manch, BMS and BKS, have been opposing some steps taken by the government, there has been no open confrontation. Nor has the BJP's ideological mentor shown any sign of losing patience with the government. Shah met RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat a week before the Modi government turned a year old.

Within the party, there has been a generational shift with senior leaders—the ailing Atal Bihari Vajpayee, L.K. Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi-- being dropped from the BJP Parliamentary Board. The BJP veterans were instead inducted into a Marg Darshak Mandal, which also has Modi and Rajnath Singh as its members. However, the advisory body has not had a single meeting since it was set up in August

With just days to go before the first anniversary of the Modi government, the BJP headquarters in New Delhi's 11, Ashoka Road is buzzing. Party leaders have done their prep and have the achievements of the government on their fingertips, ready for journalist queries. Ministers and leaders who would be holding public meetings and media interactions across the country on May 26 and 27 are gearing up too.

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