POSTED BY Sundeep ON Sep 04, 2009 AT 04:16 IST ,  Edited At: Sep 04, 2009 15:52 IST

"Since irony and sarcasm in the English language tend to go largely undetected," Swapan Dasgupta writes in the Telegraph, Saba Naqvi's The Final Solution "could  well be interpreted as a logical extension of Arun Shourie’s theatrical pronouncement that the RSS should “take over” the Bharatiya Janata Party " -- or as simply insolent.

But, he goes on to argue later in the article:

The fundamental question the BJP has to address is: why is it in existence in the first place? If upholding Hindu interests is its main leitmotif, it is not dissimilar to a grander version of the Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Musalmeen, which controls the Muslim ghettos of Hyderabad and routinely wins a Lok Sabha seat. The MIM, an offshoot of the original Razakars, resonates with nostalgia for a lost sovereignty and an eroding high culture. It will always be a factor in Muslim politics of the Deccan but a non-starter in all calculations of governance.

If the BJP wishes to be a party aspiring to some 80 Lok Sabha seats, with a presence in the Hindi-speaking states, it can persist with the cohesiveness of the erstwhile Jana Sangh. If its ambitions are greater and it seeks to challenge the Congress’s all-India presence, it has to open its doors wider to diverse currents and interests. The RSS is an important input into the BJP, but it is not the only input. If the BJP wishes to mirror the richness of the nationalist experience, it must become a Kumbh Mela of diverse tendencies.

Read the full piece at the Telegraph

FILED IN:  BJP|Hindutva|Kumbh|RSS
POSTED BY Sundeep ON Sep 04, 2009 AT 04:16 IST ,  Edited At: Sep 04, 2009 15:52 IST
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Daily Mail
Digression
9/D-124
Sep 07, 2009
10:54 PM
the poll commentators have given the statistics that congress led bjp in all segments except the upper castes. it clearly indicates that the vote bank culture is mainly of the upper castes who prefer a party dominated more by them unlike the muslims who prefer a party dominated by yadavs or dalits who vote for congress more than for mayas bsp.
the bjp has no future if it continues to be like rss talking about brahmin culture/habits/jobs as the only hindu culture and is dominated by the upper castes.it has to become a kumbhmela in real terms with adequate representation to all groups including women who r a strict no no in rss.
ganapathi
chennai, India
8/D-54
Sep 06, 2009
03:07 PM
an ideal for the bjp or for any political party is
the welfare of all indians in india.i support this
ideal fully without reservation. in return i would
ask all indians to support this ideal as well,instead
of their own minority interests material or religious.

the bjp should modernise, and this means a stop to emphasiseing hinduism at all times. bjp members or
leaders should be free to cultivate their religion
privately, but hopefully in a modern way.

the same should be asked of other communities.

this means an end to muslims praying on streets every friday or in mosques for that matter. it must be an end
to missionary activities which i regard as brainless,
in view that christians in the western world are discarding their religion enmasse.it should mean to
loud religious processions by sikhs and all other
communities.

the rss,bjp are a hindu reaction to agressive minority
religionists- this reaction is visible all over secular
europe-europeans are reasonably accomodateing to say muslims, but there is a silent reaction building up.

muslim bashing is reaching high levels especially amongst european liberal intellectuals. i suggest
rss bashers to read martin amis, sebastian faulks,
melanie philips. rss criticism of muslims will sound as
soft music in comparison.

unfortunately indian secular scribes are lazy and biased and are completely cut off from new european
liberal thinking. i have utter contempt for them.

when push comes to shove they will find they can turn
to the rss and not to pakistanis ,or the muslim league in india for help and succour.
bajrang bhai
mumbai, India
7/D-63
Sep 05, 2009
04:56 PM
Mr Test,I feel honoured by your comment,but i am not sure whether i deserve the compliment.But,i am confused as to whether Test is your full name or psuedonym.I do not have my own blog.
S.S.Nagaraj
Bangalore, India
6/D-37
Sep 05, 2009
11:14 AM
Nagraj ji you are most erudite person here. I am sure you must be blogging somewhere. Can we have link to it to enlighten us with your other viewpoints.
test
test, American Samoa
5/D-91
Sep 04, 2009
10:12 PM
The BJP does have to declare itself a specifically Hindu party. It should add that this will in no way penalise Muslims.

A Hindu India that looks after reasonable Muslim interests is what the BJP should stand for, clearly.

It should abandon all the gripes about Partition, and declare unequivocally that Partition was a good thing for Hindus.
Iqram Jahaz
Jaipur, India
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