"The construction of Ram temple at Ayodhya is an expression of national sentiment that remains unrealised." A.B. VAJPAYEE, DECEMBER 6, 2000

At the best of times the relationship between the top BJP leadership and the VHP has been bewildering. This was evident on the evening of December 6, 1992, after a raucous mob tore down the 16th century Babri Masjid in Ayodhya. As the sea of kar sevaks celebrated the assertion of Hindu might with atavistic gusto, the political face of the Ram temple movement sat alone, ashen-faced in a dingy, candle-lit room, as if in mourning. For Union Home Minister L.K. Advani it was the "saddest day" of his life.

It was a divergence that manifested itself once again last week. As Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee, traumatised by the butchery at Godhra railway station in Gujarat, appealed for the "maintenance of peace and brotherhood", VHP International General Secretary Praveen Togadia was unrelenting. "We will compel the Indian polity to either surrender or face the consequences," he told the Ram sevaks who had gathered in Ayodhya in response to the VHP's call to lay the foundation stones for the gateway to the Ram temple. Such an action would amount to a symbolic violation of a court order disallowing any construction in the Ayodhya complex.

The day before—some hours prior to the magnitude of the Godhra outrage becoming known—Advani too issued a strongly worded statement appealing to the VHP leaders "to abandon their present course of action. If, however, they persist in their present approach, the Government would not hesitate to take action against those who defy court orders or create problems for law and order". In the original draft, Advani had also suggested that in case the VHP refused to heed his appeal, he would urge the prime minister to relieve him as home minister. It required the persuasion of some cabinet colleagues for this ultimate threat to be deleted from a statement whose efficacy was blunted by the news from Godhra.

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VAJPAYEE'S PROBLEMS The Godhra killings have led to communal riots and given a fillip to the VHP's Ayodhya agitation. He has to meet his constitutional obligations and also be responsive to the angry mood in the BJP. There is dejection in the BJP after the assembly poll defeats. He has to galvanise the faithful, reassure the allies and show he is firmly in command. He has lost his communication skills. The image of a tired and withdrawn leader worries the BJP.

In an atmosphere vitiated by communal retribution, it was Togadia, not Vajpayee or Advani, who struck a chord. Even as Togadia spoke, rioters in his native Gujarat were on the rampage. By the end of the day, some 100 people had been killed and curfew imposed in 26 towns. "It's the anger of five crore people of Gujarat against a gruesome act," said Chief Minister Narendra Modi by way of explanation for his Government's inability to contain the violence. The mob wasn't in a mood to either forgive or let the law prevail. It sought an eye for an eye.

It wasn't the horrific images of charred bodies being dragged out of a burnt-out train bogie that transformed the mood. The previous Sunday, the BJP leadership had gauged the depths to which the party's popularity had plummeted. In Uttar Pradesh, the BJP finished a pathetic third and in Punjab-where its Akali Dal partner held on to its rural base-the party won just three seats. It also lost Uttaranchal.

SEASON OF DISCONTENT: (above and below) Ahmedabad residents go on a rampage burning vehicles and stoning houses in a swift and brutal retaliation for the February 27 train carnage

The VHP movement has struck a chord in an atmosphe re vitiated by the communal flare-up after the Godhra carnage.

Opinion polls suggested there was an undercurrent of Hindu nationalism running throughout the country in the aftermath of September 11 and the December 13 attack on Parliament. Very little of this has translated into active support for the BJP. Four years into government, it is in a state of organisational decay and ideological limbo. Having shed its famed "distinctiveness" for the compulsions of coalition politics and power, it has failed to fully evolve into a centre-right party. The Chennai Declaration of 1999 was a step in this direction but its message hasn't permeated to the grass-roots. Even good governance appears to be eluding it, if the by-elections in Gujarat and the disarray in Jharkhand are any indications.

It is precisely because the Godhra tragedy happened at this point of extreme emotional vulnerability that it signals a new danger for the BJP. For over a year-indeed, since the Kumbh Mela in January last year-the indefatigable VHP chief Ashok Singhal has been trying to resurrect the Ayodhya issue. Apart from the committed hardcore which believe the building of a Ram temple is all that counts, he didn't elicit a significant response initially.

The scepticism stemmed from two factors. First, the Ayodhya movement from 1989 to 1992 had a political context and was linked to a sense of perceived Hindu grievance against the distortions of the Congress' secularism. That disappeared with the demolition of December 6 and the BJP-led coalition's election victory in 1998. Second, September 11 produced an international revulsion against religious extremism. The images of the Ayodhya movement reinforced the worst stereotypes of eastern fanaticism and fuelled fears of a Hindu Taliban.

On its part, the Government tried to both stonewall and brush aside the VHP demand for the transfer of 42 of the 67 acres of property it had acquired in Ayodhya. The prime minister's meeting with the VHP delegation on January 27 was marred by acrimony-an offshoot of Singhal's strained relations with Vajpayee. The meeting did, however, lead to the Government referring the matter to Law Minister Arun Jaitley. Subsequently, there were many informal meetings between VHP representatives and the Government in which the RSS brass, including Joint General Secretary Madan Das Devi, Rajya Sabha member Bal Apte and retired high court judge Rama Jois, were also present.