JOIN USBJP not against minorities, wants justice for all: Vinay Sahasrabuddhe
Senior BJP leader and Rajya Sabha member from Maharashtra Vinay Sahasrabuddhe tells DH’s Amrita Madhukalya that the BJP is not pitted against minorities, but stands against appeasement for all. Edited excerpts.
During Ram Navami, several acts of violence were reported in Muslim areas, and there’s this pushback against the BJP. Where does the party stand on this issue?
The BJP has been waging a war against selective generosity right since Advani Ji's days. He had famously said, ‘Justice for all, appeasement for none’. What is happening is that there are certain groups and political parties, who give special treatment to certain groups with the belief that they can buy peace and tranquillity. It doesn’t happen that way. The BJP has been simply stating that let there be justice for all and appeasement of none. The hijab case, too, was a needless controversy. The school had a prescribed uniform; how can any government compel an education institution to change that.
There is lots of talk about bulldozer politics. Is this a new electoral identity for the BJP?
It is a media coinage. None of us has ever used this term. In this case, as well, the law of the land is supreme. So far as certain cases in certain areas are concerned, like Delhi, the case is in the court; let them reflect on it. There is no evidence to suggest that demolitions happened without any legal sanction, and the court would reprimand if that was not the case.
The next big election for the BJP will be in Gujarat. Will the Patidar votes be a challenge?
The approach of the BJP is to look at society as a whole, and therefore, whether it is Patidars, Kurmis, Jats, or Adivasis, we never look at these groups as vote banks. That is a definitive distinction between the BJP and other parties. Our appeal is to the entire population, and there is history to suggest that they will respond.
With the success of states like MP, Assam, and most recently UP, is the party’s electoral model now based on the beneficiaries system, from the earlier booth system?
It was there earlier also, and, with the implementation of the government’s schemes, a constituency gets created naturally. And these days, perhaps, people are realising that they benefited from one scheme or the other.
The Aam Aadmi Party has emerged as a formidable Opposition party. Do you see them emerging as the primary Opposition?
We need not single out any political party as such. Every party tries to compete for power in a democracy, and rightly so. But I don’t think that whatever success AAP might have got, it should be seen as a way of challenging the BJP electorally, considering the BJP’s pan-India presence and well-knit organisation.