Latest elections verdict proves BJP remains a fringe player

NEW DELHI: The BJP still has a long way to go before it acquires the status of a pan-India party. The country’s main opposition party not only failed to open its account in Kerala, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry but also suffered the mortification of seeing its strength in Assam plummet to just five from its previous tally of 10.

The verdict of the latest round of electoral battles across the country only proves that it has failed to learn its lessons, and in large swathes, it remains a fringe player. While LK Advani has persistently refused to leave the stage for the younger leaders, the top brass continues to be bogged down with deep mistrust.

Thus, at a time when the Congress-led UPA has been left battling charges of corruption and failure to rein in prices of essential commodities, the BJP has simply not been able to convince the electorate about its ability to provide an alternative governance blueprint.

The only solace for the party has been the performance of its state-level satraps. It swept the by-elections to the three assembly seats in Karnataka, wresting two constituencies from the Congress and the third from the JD(S). It also retained the Bastar Lok Sabha seat in Chhattisgarh.

The BJP’s hopes of improving its standing among the people rest, to a large extent, on its ability to retrieve lost ground in the next battleground state, Uttar Pradesh, and its ability to attract regional players so as to be able to broadbase its alliance. While it remains a marginal player in the politically crucial state of UP, it faces the daunting task of regaining people’s confidence in Punjab and Uttarakhand, states ruled by it, either alone or in alliance with regional outfits.

In Uttar Pradesh, it was relegated to the fourth spot in Lok Sabha polls held two years ago. The party has been toiling hard to recapture its old caste alliance, comprising the upper castes and non-Yadav OBCs. But the party is clearly hamstrung by the absence of credible leaders.

The party’s problems have been compounded by the absence of leaders who have the stature and the clout to do business with leaders of regional outfits such as the AIADMK, the INLD and the TDP. It has also been struggling to strike a balance between its ideological proclivities and coalition compulsions.

The big challenge for the BJP is to strike alliances with regional outfits in states where it has little or no presence at all, and to consolidate its position in states where it has strong bases.