In Tamil Nadu, the BJP has found itself lacking in emotional connect with the people, primarily over the language issue. But the party is confident that its Serve, Struggle, Seats formula will help it trump the AIADMK and DMK to power in next five years
From just seven states in 2014 to 17 states in 2022, the BJP footprint has grown beyond traditional strongholds to conquer new forts like the Northeast. But the Wall of Vindhyas has been a tough one to crack so far. In this special series on BJP’s Peninsular Pitch, News18 takes a look at the saffron party’s renewed push for electoral success in southern India.
In Part 2 of the series, we chart the BJP’s interesting trajectory in Tamil Nadu as it tries to improve its emotional connect with the people while dealing with an unpredictable ally in the AIADMK.
The picture of Amit Shah firmly holding Tamil Nadu BJP president K Annamalai’s arm up in the air during a public rally is a telling reflection of the confidence the party has gained in recent months.
Its solo run in the local body elections without the support of ally AIADMK has given the party a much-needed push. Senior leaders credit the BJP’s ‘profitable’ performance in the February 2022 local body elections to the organisational skills of the central and state leadership that worked in tandem to leave a definitive mark.
By giving freebies and playing on emotions, AIADMK and DMK have brought about institutionalised corruption
Annamalai called it the “Lotus blooming” moment of the BJP, one that announced to the state, which has been ruled by Dravidian parties for decades, that the BJP has truly arrived.
After having won four seats in the 2021 Assembly elections following a seat-sharing arrangement with AIADMK, the BJP’s performance in the recent urban body elections is what left the central leadership more pleased. The BJP contested in 1,374 corporation wards, 2,843 municipal wards and 7,621 town panchayat seats, and won a total of 308 seats with a vote share of 5.4%.
The Challenge: Emotional Connect
But challenges are many. BJP leaders are in agreement that their cadre in Tamil Nadu is not strong enough yet. The biggest challenge is “connecting with the people”, BJP national general secretary CT Ravi told News18.com.
“People are emotionally connected with their parties. But the challenge that we face is that both the DMK and AIADMK in the last six decades have played emotional with their voters. By giving freebies and playing on emotions, they have brought about institutionalised corruption. There is a huge gap between the rich and the poor and the six decades of emotional atyachaar by the two parties has also been something we have been tackling,” Ravi said.
“We have a plan in place. We are hoping to be the alternative for the people in the next Assembly elections. Three ‘S’s are important – Serve the people, continue our Struggle to provide good governance and then win hearts and Seats,” he said.
War and Peace With AIADMK
It was the 2021 Assembly elections that turned things around for the BJP. The election was crucial for both AIADMK and DMK as it was fought in the absence of their respective chiefs, J Jayalalithaa and M Karunanidhi. The passing away of both leaders opened up a void, one which the BJP has been trying to fill.
With the passing away of then chief minister and AIADMK supremo Jayalalithaa in 2016, the BJP-AIADMK alliance began to drift apart slowly. The internal squabbles and factionalism in the AIADMK gave the BJP the perfect opportunity to poise itself as the alternate.
The effects of the results in UP, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa can be felt even in Tamil Nadu. Tides are turning in our favour
With the AIADMK’s dismal loss to its rival DMK in the 2021 Assembly elections, where they won 75 out of 234 seats, the BJP found it to be the opportune moment to build its image as the third big contender in the electoral race.
Despite the Modi-Shah combination winning two terms at the Centre, the Modi wave had the least impact in Tamil Nadu. The BJP’s biggest liability has been its tag of being ‘pro-Hindutva’ and a party from the Hindi belt. The BJP and its ally have locked horns on an important related issue — the three-language policy which advocates teaching Hindi as the second language in non-Hindi speaking states.
Ravi, who was also BJP in-charge for Tamil Nadu in the 2021 elections, feels that while in the recent local body elections the party has emerged in the third position, there is a still a long way ahead to reach the point where it can aspire for the number one position.
“A lot of people are joining the BJP from other parties and Tamil Nadu seems to be one of the top states where we have seen such a change. In another four to five years, we will be in a position to lead,” Ravi said.
A senior BJP leader told News18.com that for many years, the AIADMK had been confident that the BJP will not be able to survive without their support.
“They wanted to keep us as the last push which will help take them to the finishing line. But that seems to be a mistake as the BJP has slowly but steadily built its base and credibility. The effects of the results in UP, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa can be felt even in this southern state. Tides are turning in our favour,” the leader said.
BJP party leaders realise that the AIADMK’s blow hot-blow cold strategy could damage their growth story.
An example is the stand taken by AIADMK when the BJP decided to launch its much publicised ‘Vel Yatra’ in 2020. The state BJP unit, under the leadership of then president L Murugan, organised a month-long yatra that aimed to cover the six abodes of Lord Murugan. The yatra was scheduled to culminate on December 6, anniversary of the Babri Masjid demolition in Ayodhya.
The strategy was multiple-pronged — to gain foothold and understand the ground reality of how people react to the BJP, send out a veiled message to ally AIADMK that they were not be considered a “junior partner” and finally test the waters for the party to fight on its own.
The AIADMK did not take it well. The Edappadi Palaniswami government denied permission for the yatra, citing fears of a second wave of Covid-19. But Tamil Nadu BJP leaders were determined to prove to the central leadership that the party has a hold in the southern state, despite its ally playing spoilsport.
The BJP defied the ban by the government and tried to continue with its mission. What irked the AIADMK were two other instances. One was when the Tamil Nadu BJP included the image of AIADMK founder, the late MG Radhakrishnan (MGR), in a promotional video. The second was draping a saffron shawl over the statue of MGR. Both instances were seen as an attempt to ‘saffronise’ MGR and AIADMK.
“We are two parties with different ideologies and different roots. We are together on issues that we agree on be it triple talaq, Citizenship Amendment Act or the farm law. They (BJP) should not forget our support on such important issues,” a senior AIADMK leader said on condition of anonymity.
BJP’s Growth Chart in Tamil Nadu
The BJP in Tamil Nadu has had an interesting trajectory over the years, but it’s first foray into the south was via neighbouring Karnataka in 2008 when BS Yediyurappa came to power with a thumping majority.
The RSS and the Bharatiya Jana Sangh have been present in Tamil Nadu since the mid-90s but their presence has been weak. Both faced the challenge of acceptability and lack of organisation. The RSS, BJS and now the BJP have had to face the challenge of being cast as anti-Dravidian, pro-Hindutva and pro-Hindi.
BJP state president Annamalai told News18.com that the party believes Dravidianism is about social justice and taking everybody along. “It is not about Brahmin bashing, OBC bashing, or being anti-Hindu. Dravidianism is about empowering all segments of the society, like it has been doing for more than 350 years,” he said.
Interestingly, the first president of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh in Tamil Nadu was Dr VK John, a Christian. John was the party’s first MLC and deputy leader of the opposition in 1953, and played an important role in building the party’s cadre.
Speaking to News18.com about the Jan Sangh’s ground work in Tamil Nadu since the early-90s, several BJP leaders pointed to how the saffron party won seats in the state as early as 1996, but the vote share percentage remained constant over the years.
“There were large scale membership drives and in places like Coimbatore, Trichy, Krishnagiri, Ramanathapuram, Salem, Kanyakumari and others, the Jana Sangh set up its units to build its cadre base. However, there was resistance as the party was viewed as North Indian, anti-Tamil, pro-Hindutva party that was run largely by Brahmins. This tag was set by the opposition and that hurt the party at the time,” a BJP leader said.
However, the RSS slowly began building its base in areas like Ramanathapuram and Kanyakumari, and helped the BJP gain, once seat at a time.
In 1996, C Velayudham was the first BJP MLA to be elected to the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly from Padmanabhapuram constituency. This was followed by the BJP winning four seats in 2001 — H Raja (Karaikudi), J Veerapandian (Mayiladuthurai), KN Lakshmanan (Mylapore) and KV Muralidharan (Thalli). The BJP’s vote percentage in that election was 3.2%. In 2006 and 2011, the party contested alone and drew a blank, yet it managed to maintain its vote percentage at around 2%.
While the DMK and AIADMK have had electoral understandings with the BJP up to 2004, it was only in 2019 that the AIADMK decided to join hands with it to fight in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. By then, the Modi-Shah juggernaut at the Centre showed some impact in Tamil Nadu as well. The Congress’ decline also played an important role in paving the way for the BJP. The alliance with the AIADMK continued in the 2021 Assembly elections.
Along with the AIADMK and DMK, the BJP is now one of the parties with high visibility in the media in Tamil Nadu. While the party has been roping in several celebrities and even big faces from other parties, BJP spokespersons on Tamil news channels have become a regular fixture in the last two years.
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