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party and there is a lot of space. Me and my colleagues who joined (BJP) found space immediately. Another thing is that (party president) Amit Shah takes great care. He keeps telling me “Himanta, you should give respect to those you have got into the party.”
If you are joining with the blessings of Amit Shah, or he is somehow involved, you are sure to be respected, to find space. In Tripura also, he ensured that.
Can you elaborate on how the Congress culture is different from the BJP one?
As Mrs Sonia Gandhi strengthened her hold over the Congress over the past 20 years, the culture changed. Loyalty to party was replaced by loyalty to family. Now Rahul Gandhi has created another system — he seems to believe and listen to only those people whose father or grandfather worked with his father or grandmother. Even in Manipur, they are promoting a young man because his father was a minister under Rajiv Gandhi. The first generation leader has no importance.
In BJP, they respect state leadership. For instance, there has to be an Election Committee meeting and at least two names have to be discussed (for choice of candidates). There are clearly defined powers for the president of the party. Or the general secretary.
My interface with Prime Minister Modi is limited because he does not get involved in party affairs, but even after all these victories, I have seen Amit Shah only wants to strengthen these democratic structures. For instance, most of the senior leaders of the party were consulted before we finalised the partnership in Tripura.
Then there are small differences. For instance, even senior leaders like Tarun Gogoi couldn’t go beyond the visitors room of the Congress president. I joined the BJP and was straightaway dining with Amit Shah in his dining room.
If there is a family function or personal bereavement, you always hear from BJP leaders. I recently lost my brother — the Prime Minister spoke to me; sent a letter to my mother; Amit Shah spoke to me; visited me on his next visit to Assam. There is a lot of personal warmth.
I think the Congress still believes in feudalism but one or two more election defeats and they will open up.
BJP has done well in the northeast. Does this impact the elections in West Bengal or Orissa?
To crack the north-east — many are Christian states; there are a lot of Muslims in some — is more difficult than other states given the ideology of the BJP. But our wins in the north-east are a huge lesson for any political party. Previously, the BJP’s thinking was to say, “In Assam, the AGP (Asom Gana Parishad) and we share a common vote bank so we should fight AGP.”
Similarly, in Tripura, it was, “TMC (Trinamool Congress) and us share a vote bank so let us fight TMC.” That changed when Amit Shah took over, and subsequently Ram Madhav got involved, and I joined the party, we clearly demarcated who our enemy was. “Is the regional party our enemy?” The answer is “No”.
So we decided to leave regional parties with their vote banks. We have an unofficial code of conduct — for instance, we don’t take senior leaders from these parties into the BJP. Then, we took their help, and with them, our organisation worked overtime to ensure that the Congress vote bank came to the BJP. So, today, in the north-east, the regional parties are holding their own but we have decimated the Congress.
Will this work in West Bengal also?
I think the party president will follow the same approach in West Bengal also. In West Bengal, the TMC is there, but there are also a lot of Congress leaders who are not happy. They are holding onto a good number of votes in their own constituency. Then there are also many other parties and interested groups that you can bring under the overall umbrella of the BJP in that state. In the north-east, there was no ideological expansion. But there was a clear political decision involving regional parties — “You hold onto your own vote and we will take on the Congress.” That worked for the regional parties. We are replacing the Congress in the north-east without affecting regional parties. Since I joined BJP, and since Amit Shah and Ram Madhav started focusing on the region, not one regional party leader has joined BJP.
This is working now, but if you build your party without ideological expansion in the region, what is the glue that will hold everyone together a few years later?
Actually, what is BJP’s ideology? Nation building, development. So local parties aren’t opposed to this. But they want the region to get priority. You see what RSS is doing. It said in its recent resolution that regional language should get priority in schools. And the BJP also respects regional feelings. So I don’t see any issue.
So, there needn’t be a 100% ideological fit?
That should never be forced because India is a diverse country. For instance, in Nagaland, you must give the local partner enough political space to say something to the Naga. Similarly in Assam, or Manipur. So in Manipur your local interests are Manipuri but your larger national agenda is the same. There has to be blending. In the north-east this is working.
Well, in truth, you have to do this everywhere, not just the northeast, don’t you?
That’s right. I think the north-east can be a good template. Wherever there is a strong regional feeling, like in the southern states, don’t attack these.
There are 25 Lok Sabha seats in the NorthEast. How many are you targeting in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections?
We will have 19-20 seats. This isn’t a target — but a done deal. We have eight of these now. Eight will go to 19-20 easily. Twenty-one is the cut -off. But of course, for this, our governments in the region will have to perform in the next one year.
Are you doing well, in terms of governance, in Assam?
Yes, although I wouldn’t say that people are 100% satisfied. We have a lot to do, but things are going on in right earnest. Central government has signed off on most of the developmental projects. The Indo-Bangladesh border fencing is on. A good environment has been created.
The registry in Assam (of citizens to separate genuine residents of the state and illegal Bangladeshi immigrants) has gone off well until now?
As of now, but the second list will come by June 30, and we are expecting that it won’t be as smooth as the first one, which everyone knew was a draft. In the second list, there may be some whose names are not there. But a repeated opportunity is being given to everyone. And if their name is not there are forums for redressal.
How do you see 2019?
In a national election, the fight has to be between the Congress and the BJP. In a by-election, sure, regional parties are important; in state elections, regional parties matter. But in a national election, the people will choose between Rahul Gandhi and Narendra Modi. It can’t be anybody else. And I think Narendra Modi will get more seats than in 2014, because the contest now is not between Narendra Modi and Manmohan Singh. It is between Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi.
STRAIGHT TALK BJP’s northeast face says Narendra Modi will get more votes in the next Lok Sabha elections as he will compete with the new Congress president, instead of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh