During the three-week-long political drama that undermined India's
faith in coalitions, Atal Bihari Vajpayee was repeatedly asked whether he would have
another shy at the prime ministership in this Parliament. His well-rehearsed answer:
"We are keeping all options open." In plain English, it meant that the BJP was
keeping all avenues of speculation open. Having failed to enlist any new allies at the
national level, Vajpayee and BJP President L.K. Advani were extremely successful in
conveying the impression that there were enough fifth columnists in the Congress to force
a devastating split. By forging a forum of first-term MPs that even included the Youth
Congress president, the saffron duo gave Sitaram Kesri a few sleepless nights. Inevitably,
it came to nought, but it suddenly showed that there is a BJP beyond Jaswant Singh's
decorousness and Vajpayee's poetic oratory. A BJP that is fast learning the virtues of
beating the enemy at its own game. Forget isolation, the BJP opened its lines of
communication with the "other" side during the Jain Commission crisis. This will
not yield returns now, but psychological warfare confers long-term benefits. Like after
another inconclusive general election.
During the three-week-long political drama that undermined India's
faith in coalitions, Atal Bihari Vajpayee was repeatedly asked whether he would have
another shy at the prime ministership in this Parliament. His well-rehearsed answer:
"We are keeping all options open." In plain English, it meant that the BJP was
keeping all avenues of speculation open. Having failed to enlist any new allies at the
national level, Vajpayee and BJP President L.K. Advani were extremely successful in
conveying the impression that there were enough fifth columnists in the Congress to force
a devastating split. By forging a forum of first-term MPs that even included the Youth
Congress president, the saffron duo gave Sitaram Kesri a few sleepless nights. Inevitably,
it came to nought, but it suddenly showed that there is a BJP beyond Jaswant Singh's
decorousness and Vajpayee's poetic oratory. A BJP that is fast learning the virtues of
beating the enemy at its own game. Forget isolation, the BJP opened its lines of
communication with the "other" side during the Jain Commission crisis. This will
not yield returns now, but psychological warfare confers long-term benefits. Like after
another inconclusive general election.
