Abhishek Pandey

BJP wants to take the power ride. Ram temple issue is too old to win this ride. Party needs fresh ideas and newly appointed president of BJP understands this well. He has presented the ‘old wine in new bottle’ and this wine does not seem to be deleterious for nation’s health, as Hindus and Muslims, both, would find it yummy.

Since the inception of the Ayodhya issue, the right wing never tuned its tone as soft as national president of BJP, Gadkari did during recent national conclave at Indore. He said, BJP is committed to the cause of temple construction at Ayodhya. Nothing new in this idea but Gadkari went one step further.

He asked Muslims to be generous to not oppose the construction of grand temple at disputed site. Even, he allured them saying that the party would facilitate the construction of mosque beside the temple. The tone is new and has never been heard by anyone, at least from the saffron brigade.

I think, he is trying to find out the practical solution of the problem and the plot to erect BJP’s building. He mentioned that the litigations are pending in the court for the resolution of the dispute and the verdict would not serve the purpose because one party would win and other may lose.

The visionary Gadkari is also aiming to hit the two birds from a single stone. As his proposal would neither annoy the ‘moderate’ Hindus, those are looking for the resolution of the dispute, nor would it send a wrong message to the Muslims that injustice has been done to them.

I used the moderate world because the Vishva Hindu Parishad and Shiv Sena have already registered their protest. The supreme of these parties, Ashok Singhal and Bal Thackeray, have said that “Ram temple is religious issue not a political issue. BJP or for that matter any party must refrain from taking any decision of its own, as it would bring dishonor to the several Karsevaks who sacrificed their life for the cause of Hindus.

Why the hell they don’t understand that the days of decisive politics are gone and they are gonna get nothing from such politics. Except, killing or maiming some innocents and making the life of their loved one’s hellish.

He knows and also understands it well that the developmental politics is the future and the construction of temple would alleviate the stature of the BJP among the parties supporting Hindu cause.

Though. in his complete speech of 7993 words, he spoke only 103 words on temple issue, mere 1.3 percent of total speech, but all the media, print, electronic, web, blew its as it was the core of his speech. Whatever, media know well what sells. Gadkari also knows well what sells and he is selling what is in trend, as he is a businessman turned politician.

Even, his vision is politically correct also. I too share the view of Nitin Gadkari, “This initiative would herald a new amity and reinforce the bond for a resurgent India.”

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By Abhishek Pandey

Lal Krishna Advani would advertise his poll campaign on 2000 website, according to one of the news agency report. The poll campaigning on the net is a new trend in India. Advani is likely to become the pioneer of this trend.

BJP is having five official websites. Advanis’s website is the most popular among its all other websites these days. Narendra Modi and Shivraj Singh Chauhan also have their own website. BJP stalwart Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi also started his website and blog recently to address the issue of global warming and other environmental issues, though political issues are there. BJP has its own official website and also own one more website which is called friends of BJP’s website. BJP is also present on Orkut and Facebook; both are well-known and very popular social networking sites among netizens. Internet has been chosen as one of the best medium for campaigning in next LS elections by the India’s most ‘traditional’ party.

Narendra Modi has 4966 supporters on FaceBook group far more than 297 of LK Advani. He is first among all the Indian in largest supporter base on FB. Manmohan Singh is on second position with 2590 members in his FB group. Rahul Gandhi is on third with 1982 supporters followed by his mother Ms Sonia Gandhi, who is having 988 supporters. Atal Bihari is also there only with 158 net supporters. There are some other leaders of different parties with nominal supporter base.

Social Networking sites are there. Online forums are there. There are not less than 1000 online groups, forums on Indian political parties and their leaders. Most of the national and regional parties have their online presence with poor layout and design of their websites, except few of them are designed well.

Internet poll advertising and fund raising was one of the innovations of US President Obama in the US elections this time. There are ample numbers of ways today to advertise on the Internet. There are websites like Adsense/Adword, Netclix, Bidvertiser and lots more to provide facility to advertise anything on the net. YouTube is there to upload the election speeches online. Congress is also trying to follow the trend and have started uploading the speeches of Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and other senior leaders on YouTube.

Internet penetration has increased in India and this has become the best place to attract the audience which has no time to go to attend the public meetings or gatherings of the political parties. It will surely attract the software engineers, NRIs, industrialist and other elite class people, who can get the access of leaders’ speeches inside their air conditioned office cabins or in their bed rooms by the click of a mouse.

Internet has changed the lives of millions. This Lok Sabha poll will tell us, how it can affect the political career of the Indian leaders in the country, where 60% population still lives in village and most of our people are not having access to Internet. Forget about Internet and computers, they are not even having proper electricity supply for irrigation or lighten their house with CFL. Proper roads are not in many villages for daily commuters. Students are dropping out after primary classes. Farmers are committing suicide. Migrants are beaten up in other states because they are going away from their home to get jobs.

In such kinds of unpleasant situation, Internet is best medium to keep your eyes closed from all these problems. Because in the virtual world of web, Politicians need not to go and listen the problems of the people on the ground. They need not to feel the plight of the people by standing beside them; those are not having even basic facilities. In India, Internet will not be as success as it was in US because we are India not US. Most of the US citizens have easy access to computer and internet but every Indian does not have even access to two meals a day. My dear Politicians of the great nation called India; choose the technology to empower the vote bank but empower the people first, so they can get access of it.

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