Satyapal Malik's populism: Maverick or BJP's Trojan horse?

Satyapal Malik, Governor of Meghalaya, has for the last six months intensified his public attacks on the Narendra Modi government, targeting even Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself. Strangely, he has neither been rebuked nor has the prime minister advised the president to withdraw his "pleasure" from the Meghalaya governor.

In his latest outburst, Governor Malik, addressing a public meeting at Jind in Haryana, urged farmers to stay united and vote en bloc two years later. "These people will run away if you vote unitedly. Then you can have your own government in Delhi." He also alleged that the government was not implementing MSP (minimum support price) because "a friend of the prime minister has set up a godown in Panipat on 50 acres before the three farm laws were enacted – he needs wheat at cheap rates so that he can sell it at a higher price."

The next day at a meeting at Rohtak, he reiterated, "It's time to oust these people in Delhi from power and bring our people on one platform." He also claimed that he had been advised by his friends in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that he would be made president or vice president of the country if he stopped criticising the government. "They tried to lure me from every angle, but I turned down all their proposals and spoke in favour of the farmers. … These posts of governor and president are nothing," he told the public meeting.

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Malik, as the governor of Jammu and Kashmir, had claimed that he had been offered a bribe of Rs 300 crore for clearing two projects – one belonged to Ambani (presumed to be the group insurance scheme for government employees by Anil Ambani's Reliance General Insurance) and the other to a minister close to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in the Mehbooba Mufti-led alliance government of the BJP and the PDP (Peoples' Democratic Party). No denial came from anyone even then.

Later, Malik directly targeted the prime minister, describing him as "arrogant" because he had apparently responded to Malik's reference to the deaths of more than 700 agitating farmers sarcastically asking, "Did they die for me?" Then Malik claimed that when told of this interaction, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said he was being misled by some people (Iski akal maar rakhi hai logon ne).

That these diatribes against the party's top brass have gone unpunished is strange for a party deeply intolerant of criticism against its leadership. Nor can the government allow a governor to question its policies in the way Malik has been doing for the last six months. So either Governor Satyapal Malik is an unguided missile whom the BJP thinks is best not to engage in the public eye, or there is a deeper game at hand.

Malik has never made a secret of his political ambitions. Earlier, it was expected that he would quit or be thrown out as governor so that he could participate in the UP Assembly elections. Now it is probable that the timeline for his re-entry into politics has been extended to the 2024 general elections.

He hinted at this possibility saying, "Hundred per cent, in the upcoming polls, you will realise that new people and parties have entered (the electoral battle), and they will win and form the new government. …I can (lead), but it's not good that I say this thing. Whoever leads, I will participate in it. …My governorship is going to end in 7-8 months. … (In the coming polls) I will campaign with all my might throughout North India and will chase them away."

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This would be the simplest explanation for his shenanigans - that he is trying to carve out political space as a farmers' leader in the run-up to 2024. He may be following in the footsteps of his mentor and colleague V P Singh who launched the Jan Morcha while still within the Congress. If he does not form an alliance with the anti-BJP Opposition in North India in the run-up to 2024 and flies solo, he might be playing a complex game, especially if he is allowed to complete his term as governor. His critics are bound to allege that his backers within the BJP want him to infiltrate the farmers' movement and be their Trojan horse in the electoral Badlands of Western Uttar Pradesh in 2024.

This means that the BJP recognises that it is in a tough spot with the farmers in UP. By launching an independent political party, Malik could well split the anti-incumbency vote against the Modi regime in the national elections. This will not be the first time the BJP has forged such a devious political instrument. Strident minority parties and Anna Hazare's anti-corruption movement are just a few examples of how such seemingly oppositional voices have been used by it in the past either to split the opposition vote or create a fertile ground to facilitate the BJP's electoral success.

(Bharat Bhushan is a journalist based in Delhi)

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.