Interview: We must win hearts of investors, says BJP’s Captain Abhimanyu
May 15, 2014
New Delhi: While BJP prepares to celebrate a Lok Sabha election victory after 15 years, the Political Indian talked to party’s national spokesperson Capt. Abhimanyu on how he felt on the counting day eve. The 47-year old ex-serviceman who is the face of the party in Haryana was very candid in his approach and said that the results would be the best for the BJP ever.
Q. The exit polls predict a comfortable victory for the BJP and the NDA, what do you have to say on the eve of counting?
A. The exits polls are just an indicator; they tell us the direction in which things are moving. The country is in a mood for a change and that is clear. We have our own network with huge number of workers at all levels, and their feedback has also points at a groundswell of support for us. Voters wanted a strong, stable government and they have given us a resounding mandate.
Q. These elections seemed to be more about Narendra Modi than the BJP. Has that paid off?
A. Modiji’s coronation as prime ministerial candidate was a collective decision by the party. He has done excellent work in Gujarat, earning respect by developing the state. Crores of party workers worked under his leadership of Modiji, and people of the country saw a real common man achieve so much, they loved him.
Q. If you get a majority on your own, will you take other political parties along?
A. We have never played the politics of untouchability ever. It’s the Congress that plays the game of political untouchability in the name of pseudo-secularism. BJP’s doors are open for all the political parties who follow the agenda of good governance and development.
Q. But there are people like Giriraj Singh who continue to spew venom.
A. Giriraj Singh has said that he was quoted out of context, though the party doesn’t endorse any such comment. And on secularism, we don’t need to learn it from others. We follow the tenets of vasudhaiva kutumbakam (the whole world is a family) and sarve bhavantu sukhin (happiness for all). The one who runs the nation has to treat people of all caste, religion and state equally.
Q. What lies in store for Mr. Lal Krishna Advani?
A. Advaniji is the shikhar purush (towering personality) of Indian politics, he has nurtured the party, had worked very hard to make it grow. When he comes to the parliament as an MP, he will be a guide, not only to the government but also to the political system of India. He is not hankering for power, his personality is much above that and he will keep guiding the government.
Q. Urban pockets have been your strength, now AAP is making in-roads in the urban areas, do you see a potential threat?
A. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is a new political outfit. They are yet to evolve. They have not made their ideology clear, they are yet to establish internal democracy in their party; they are running with a party supremo at the helm. They have several kinds of voices together in the party, who are often at odds against each other. It was only the weakness of the Congress party and the space they left that made the AAP grow. But AAP is yet to prove itself as a serious political party.
Q. Your comments on the role of RSS in elections and governance.
A. The RSS played a great role as far as the elections are concerned, they campaigned for maximum voting to make the democracy strong. As far as governance, history tells us, they don’t interfere in it. RSS is a very disciplined organization which has its own style of functioning.
Q. Your comments on the Congress campaign and the blame-game which has already started.
A. The elections gone by have proved that the Congress party is leaderless, bereft of policies and directionless. This will be the worst performance by the Congress party ever; it has made itself irrelevant during the last 10-years of the governance. It’s disappointing that they didn’t even give the minimum courtesy to their prime minister during his farewell, the man who anchored the government for two terms. See, defeat is always orphan and it’s in the Congress culture that if they win, it’s all about the Gandhi family and while they look for scapegoats when they loose. Let’s see who becomes the scapegoat after results tomorrow.
Q. What would be the main challenges for the new government?
A. Let the government be formed, there is a long list. We will have to counter inflation, corruption, and speed up infrastructure development; there is a severe policy paralysis, the approach needs to be changed to pro-active policy initiative. We must win the heart of the investors; the environment must be business friendly; we also need to work on getting the economy on track.
Q. Narendra Modi’s mantra has been “minimum government, maximum governance”. How do you plan to implement it?
A. “Minimum government, maximum governance” means giving better quality governance by deciding where the government should be and where it should not be. We have to identify how much government interference is required and areas where less government interference will be good. The system needs to be reviewed in a creative manner, to optimize it for effective policy implementation.
May 15, 2014
New Delhi: While BJP prepares to celebrate a Lok Sabha election victory after 15 years, the Political Indian talked to party’s national spokesperson Capt. Abhimanyu on how he felt on the counting day eve. The 47-year old ex-serviceman who is the face of the party in Haryana was very candid in his approach and said that the results would be the best for the BJP ever.
A. The exits polls are just an indicator; they tell us the direction in which things are moving. The country is in a mood for a change and that is clear. We have our own network with huge number of workers at all levels, and their feedback has also points at a groundswell of support for us. Voters wanted a strong, stable government and they have given us a resounding mandate.
Q. These elections seemed to be more about Narendra Modi than the BJP. Has that paid off?
A. Modiji’s coronation as prime ministerial candidate was a collective decision by the party. He has done excellent work in Gujarat, earning respect by developing the state. Crores of party workers worked under his leadership of Modiji, and people of the country saw a real common man achieve so much, they loved him.
Q. If you get a majority on your own, will you take other political parties along?
A. We have never played the politics of untouchability ever. It’s the Congress that plays the game of political untouchability in the name of pseudo-secularism. BJP’s doors are open for all the political parties who follow the agenda of good governance and development.
Q. But there are people like Giriraj Singh who continue to spew venom.
A. Giriraj Singh has said that he was quoted out of context, though the party doesn’t endorse any such comment. And on secularism, we don’t need to learn it from others. We follow the tenets of vasudhaiva kutumbakam (the whole world is a family) and sarve bhavantu sukhin (happiness for all). The one who runs the nation has to treat people of all caste, religion and state equally.
Q. What lies in store for Mr. Lal Krishna Advani?
A. Advaniji is the shikhar purush (towering personality) of Indian politics, he has nurtured the party, had worked very hard to make it grow. When he comes to the parliament as an MP, he will be a guide, not only to the government but also to the political system of India. He is not hankering for power, his personality is much above that and he will keep guiding the government.
Q. Urban pockets have been your strength, now AAP is making in-roads in the urban areas, do you see a potential threat?
A. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is a new political outfit. They are yet to evolve. They have not made their ideology clear, they are yet to establish internal democracy in their party; they are running with a party supremo at the helm. They have several kinds of voices together in the party, who are often at odds against each other. It was only the weakness of the Congress party and the space they left that made the AAP grow. But AAP is yet to prove itself as a serious political party.
Q. Your comments on the role of RSS in elections and governance.
A. The RSS played a great role as far as the elections are concerned, they campaigned for maximum voting to make the democracy strong. As far as governance, history tells us, they don’t interfere in it. RSS is a very disciplined organization which has its own style of functioning.
Q. Your comments on the Congress campaign and the blame-game which has already started.
A. The elections gone by have proved that the Congress party is leaderless, bereft of policies and directionless. This will be the worst performance by the Congress party ever; it has made itself irrelevant during the last 10-years of the governance. It’s disappointing that they didn’t even give the minimum courtesy to their prime minister during his farewell, the man who anchored the government for two terms. See, defeat is always orphan and it’s in the Congress culture that if they win, it’s all about the Gandhi family and while they look for scapegoats when they loose. Let’s see who becomes the scapegoat after results tomorrow.
Q. What would be the main challenges for the new government?
A. Let the government be formed, there is a long list. We will have to counter inflation, corruption, and speed up infrastructure development; there is a severe policy paralysis, the approach needs to be changed to pro-active policy initiative. We must win the heart of the investors; the environment must be business friendly; we also need to work on getting the economy on track.
Q. Narendra Modi’s mantra has been “minimum government, maximum governance”. How do you plan to implement it?
A. “Minimum government, maximum governance” means giving better quality governance by deciding where the government should be and where it should not be. We have to identify how much government interference is required and areas where less government interference will be good. The system needs to be reviewed in a creative manner, to optimize it for effective policy implementation.
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This story was first published in www.thepoliticalindian.com on May 15, 2014
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