RAM MADHAV
HIS DAYS AS RSS SPOKESPERSON: That was also the time of the Ram Janambhoomi movement—a BJP-led agitation for building the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya that had toppled a masjid to make its point. Saffron was a colour that needed a lot of explanations, some spin and a broader brush. The bespectacled, English speaking Ram Madhav was the right ideologue for the job. Dressed in telegenic FabIndia kurtas, his iPad and the latest smartphone in hand, he met journalists and tried to erase the stereotypical image of a narrow-minded Sanghi. I recall when I once pointed out that it was almost an anachronism to see an RSS leader using the latest technology, he retorted saying, “There is a difference between being modern and being western. I may be wearing a kurta-pyjama but I am sufficiently liberal, democratic and open to criticism. In that sense, I am modern. But at the same time, being modern should not be confused with being westernised. The two are not synonymous.” The suave Sangh apparatchik remained an RSS spokesperson during the tenure of the first BJP-led government at the centre, when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the PM and did most of the firefighting during the 2002 Gujarat riots. He was also manning the mikes during L.K. Advani’s Jinnah moment. This is when the Hindutva hardliner Advani tried to do an image make-over during a visit to Pakistan in 2005. Standing before the tomb of Mohammed Ali Jinnah, he described the founder of Pakistan as “secular” and an “ambassador of HinduMuslim unity”. This created an uproar back home. As the RSS spokesperson, it was Madhav who had to articulate the Sangh’s stand on Advani who was also then the BJP president. He was deputed along with other senior BJP leaders such as Venkaiah Naidu for crisis management. As soon as Advani landed in India, the media was outside the airport waiting to question him. A chit was handed to Advani which said, “protocol should not be mistaken for policy.” For reasons of his own, Advani chose to ignore this advice.