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Bharatiya Janata Party
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The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) (translation: Indian People's Party), founded in 1980, is a major political party of India. Designed to represent the country's majority community and Centre-right in nature, the party advocates conservative social policies, self reliance, robust economic growth, foreign policy driven by a nationalist agenda, and strong national defense. The party has a strong relation with the Sangh Parivar, in which the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh plays a leading role.
The BJP, in alliance with several other parties, was in power from 1998 to 2004, with Atal Bihari Vajpayee as the Prime Minister and Lal Krishna Advani as his deputy.
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The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) (translation: Indian People's Party), founded in 1980, is a major political party of India. Designed to represent the country's majority community and Centre-right in nature, the party advocates conservative social policies, self reliance, robust economic growth, foreign policy driven by a nationalist agenda, and strong national defense. The party has a strong relation with the Sangh Parivar, in which the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh plays a leading role.
The BJP, in alliance with several other parties, was in power from 1998 to 2004, with Atal Bihari Vajpayee as the Prime Minister and Lal Krishna Advani as his deputy. It is the biggest constituent of the National Democratic Alliance which currently is in the opposition.
History
Origins
The BJP is a direct successor of The Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS, Indian People's Union), founded in 1951 by Syama Prasad Mookerjee, a nationalist leader, former Union Minister and freedom-fighter. It was considered the political wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. But the fortunes of the young party took a dip in 1953, when Mookherjee was jailed in Kashmir by then Indian Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. After his death in custody, the BJS lasted for 24 more years, but never seriously challenged the power of Indian National Congress, the only well-structured political party since India's independence. It did however groom future political leaders like Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Lal Krishna Advani.
When Indira Gandhi imposed a state of emergency in 1975, postponing elections and making contested use of major central powers granted to her by the Constitution, the BJS joined a coalition of parties in active protest. Several of its
leaders were arrested. But when elections were called in 1977, the BJS invested all its political and organizational
capital in merging into the new Janata Party, a unified opposition party. A mixture of socialists, regionalists, and former Congressmen, the party was united in its opposition to the Emergency and Indira Gandhi. The Janata Party defeated Indira Gandhi's Congress Party in a landslide victory and formed a government under Morarji Desai's leadership. Vajpayee, the most senior BJS leader, became Minister for External Affairs, while Lal Krishna Advani became the Minister for Information and Broadcasting.
The Janata Party government lasted for only two years, and following its collapse, Indira Gandhi's Congress
came back to power. When the Janata Party imploded, the nucleus of the BJS reorganised themselves.
Early years
The BJP was founded in December 1980, under the direct leadership of Vajpayee and Advani. In the 1984 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP got only 2 seats out of 543. However, in the following 1989 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP obtained 88 seats and it supported the Janata Dal-led coalition of V.P. Singh. On October 23, 1990, Advani was arrested by the Chief Minister of Bihar, Laloo Prasad Yadav, due to his agitation for the construction of the Ram Janmabhoomi temple in Ayodhya, and as a result the BJP
withdrew its support of the government and it fell.
After the 1991 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP became the premier opposition party, and the Congress government functioned as a minority. During this time, the Janata Dal, the other major offshoot of the Janata Party, saw itself crumble into regional factions, and many leaders opted for the BJP.
The First BJP Government (May 16 - 31st, 1996)
In 1996, the BJP became the single-largest political party in the parliament, with the Congress at its lowest tally ever. The President of India, Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma, appointed Vajpayee as Prime Minister although he could not enlist the support of 271 MPs in the Lok Sabha. However, non-Congress, non-BJP parties were able to gain a majority of support and so Vajpayee was obliged to resign after serving the shortest time as prime minister in India - 13 days. A broad centre-left coalition government that proved its majority known as the United Front took over.
The Second BJP Government (March 19, 1998 - October 13, 1999)
Lok Sabha elections were again held in 1998, and the NDA National Democratic Alliance obtained a simple majority. This time, the BJP (NDA) had allied with the AIADMK and the Biju Janata Dal besides its existing allies, the Samata Party, the Shiromani Akali Dal and Shiv Sena. Outside support was provided by the Telugu Desam Party. The NDA had a slim majority, and Vajpayee returned as Prime Minister. But the coalition ruptured in May 1999 when the leader of AIADMK, Jayalalitha, withdrew her support, and fresh elections were again called.
The NDA government provided significant support to the Prasar Bharati Act which gave government owned media channels more autonomy. The Act had been passed by the National Front government with BJP support.
The new Government carried out an electoral promise with the 5 nuclear tests at Pokhran, in Rajasthan in 1998, which gave India a weaponised nuclear capacity.
The Third BJP Government (October 13, 1999 - May 13, 2004)
On October 13, 1999, the BJP-led NDA won 303 seats. The BJP won an all-time high of 183. Vajpayee became Prime Minister for the third time in his life, and Advani became the Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister. This NDA Government lasted its term of five years. Vajpayee and his economic team, led by Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha, continued the policies initiated by the previous Congress Government under P V Narasimha Rao and Manmohan Singh, pushed through major privatizations of big government corporations, the liberalization of trade under World Trade Organization rules, opening the skies to commercial airlines, foreign investment and ownership and developed "Special Economic Zones" where industries could enjoy special infrastructure. The government especially catered to the rising information technology industry, and lowered taxes for middle-class Indians and businesses. Record increases in agricultural and industrial production were matched by hungry middle-class consumers, and increasing foreign trade and investment.Vajpayee took a personal interest in the Golden Quadrilateral project, a road system which aimed at linking the four corners of the nation with heavy, industrial roads. His education programs boosted the enrollment of children into primary schools, expanded aid for schools and pushed new-age technologies to improve schooling.
The Vajpayee administration also oversaw the country's intelligence and defense lapses preceding the Kargil War which ultimately led to the death of 524 Indian soldiers in the subsequent Indian military campaign (Kargil War) to recover lost ground on the Indian side of the Line of Control under harsh conditions and recovered the strategic mountain posts from Pakistani irregulars who had occupied them. The opposition parties campaigned against the government accusing the government for not taking timely action despite being in the know of Pakistan's game plan at least a year in advance.
Earlier, in December 1999, the party had severely been criticized for its conduct, when the then External Affairs Minister, Jaswant Singh, personally escorted three terrorists to Kandahar in return for the hostages on board a hijacked aircraft. The terrorists included Omar Ahmed Sheikh (involved in the killing of Daniel Pearl ) and Jaish-e-Mohammad chief, Mohammad Azhar.
The government was also unable to prevent or abort Akshardham, Raghunath Mandir, the Parliament and Red Fort attacks. Afzal Guru, convicted in the Parliament House attack case, had been arrested and let off two months before the incident took place.
Subsequently, in 2002, the Prevention of Terrorist Activities Act law increasing the powers of police authorities and intelligence agencies was passed in an effort to curb subversive political activities and terrorism. The POTA was promulgated chiefly in response to the December 13 2001 terrorist attacks on the Union Parliament. . It was subsequently repealed by the UPA government in 2004.
In 2001, the Tehelka sting operation caught the BJP president, Bangaru Laxman, accepting Rs 1 lakh in cash from journalists pretending to be defence dealers. The grainy spy-cam video clip of Laxman putting the cash in a drawer became a symbol of political corruption. No action was taken against Laxman till the UPA came to power in 2004, when CBI booked five corruption cases related to the Tehelka sting, including the one against Laxman. The trial is still on.. The Tehelka scam severely affected the credibility of the NDA Government and saw the Congress and its allies boycotting Parliament. As a result, BJP President, Bangaru Laxman, and the Defense Minister, George Fernandes were forced to resign. 7 months later, the controversial minister was reinstated by the prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee.
After the 2004 General Election
The BJP and the NDA suffered a shock defeat in the general elections in 2004, and failed to muster a parliamentary majority. A.B. Vajpayee passed on the prime ministership to Dr. Manmohan Singh of the Congress Party, and its United Progressive Alliance.
After the defeat was clear, several prominent BJP members including Sushma Swaraj and L.K. Advani, protested that Sonia Gandhi should not be permitted to hold the Prime Minister's office because of her Italian birth and her failure to take Indian citizenship for almost 15 years after her wedding to Rajiv Gandhi in spite of her claims to have "become an Indian in her heart the day she became Indira Gandhi's daughter-in-law".
Independent analysts saw the defeat arising from a backlash by large classes of people who had not benefitted from the economic growth as well as a failure by the party to secure strong allies. The BJP slogan of "India Shining" and the "Feel Good Factor" boomeranged. Nevertheless, the defeat was incomprehensible to some pollsters and political analysts, who assumed that the BJP would win on the basis of Vajpayee's popularity, the national economic stability and the revival of the peace process with Pakistan. Following the defeat, there was a perception amongst parts of the party cadre that the party had expected victory to come easy and thus volunteers of the organisation had not worked hard enough to canvass voters and recruit supporters, and that the political campaign of BJP had remained confined to television, radio and SMS (mobile phones). There was also a belief that socio-religious organizations close to the BJP (the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Vishwa Hindu Parishad), offered little assistance in these elections, due to the BJP government's non-pursuit of the Ayodhya temple issue, uniform civil code, and other ideological staples, and the attitude of many BJP leaders that the BJP did not require their aid to be successful. The most plausible theory is that India's elections are still on the basis of local factors. The BJP did well in states where it had recently won or where there was anti-incumbency (I.E. Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Karnataka, Rajastan, Chattisgarh), but was badly beaten in states where it tied up with unpopular ruling parties (I.E. the AIADMK in Tamil Nadu and TDP in Andhra Pradesh). Caste combinations were another factor in its loss.
Achievements
Vajpayee was responsible for three efforts to build peaceful relations with Pakistan. In 1999, he rode on the inaugural Delhi-Lahore bus, and signed the Lahore Declaration with the Pakistani Prime Minister, committing India to peace. In 2001 Vajpayee invited Pakistan's military ruler, Pervez Musharraf, to Delhi, though the summit failed. And despite the terrorist attacks that froze relations for two and a half years, Vajpayee, in a speech to Parliament in August 2003, spoke of his "absolute last attempt of my life" to foster peace with Pakistan, de-freezing relations and invoking praise from world leaders.
In 2004, the Government signed the South Asia Free Trade Agreement with Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives, a decision intended to vastly benefit over 1.6 billion people.
BJP's political alliances and their consequent dilution of hindutva ideology created a noticeable rift between the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the Bharatiya Janata Party in ideological terms. The RSS, from where a good deal of BJP leaders have migrated, has sought the party to take a more aggressive stand on ideological issues such as the building of the Ayodhya mandir and the adoption of a Uniform Civil Code. It prefers a swadeshi economic model of "Hindu socialism".The BJP as part of NDA while in power at the Centre could not pursue ideological tenets such as Ayodhya or the Civil Code to ensure that its allies continued their support.
Key Events
2004:
- Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Uma Bharati resigns as she is charged in a dated case related to hoisting the Indian tricolour in a minority area.
- Party President Venkaiah Naidu quits, paving the way for Lal Krishna Advani to take up the post.
2005:
- The BJP derives political mileage out of the Congress party's use of governors to bring down its government in Goa, and preventing it from forming a government in Jharkhand and Bihar post-elections. The BJP eventually forms a government in Jharkhand and wins a second set of elections in Bihar with the JD(U).
- During a visit to Pakistan, party President LK Advani creates controversy he names the country's founder, Muhammed Ali Jinnah, "secular". The impending flack from his party leads to the premature end of his tenure at the end of the year.
- The party faces embarrassment in a sting operation where journalists offer money to MP's to raise questions in Parliament. Six of the ten expelled parliamentarians are from the party.
2006
- Rajnath Singh, a former Union Minister and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, takes over as BJP Party President.
- Former Chief Ministers Uma Bharati (Madhya Pradesh), Babulal Marandi (Jharkhand) and Madan Lal Khurana (Delhi) officially leave the BJP to float their own political fronts.
- The BJP aligns with the JD(S) to form a coalition in Karnataka, its first government in South India.
- An array of opposition parties engineer the collapse of the Arjun Munda government in Jharkhand and prop up an independent BJP rebel, Madhu Koda, as Chief Minister.
- Former Union Minister and urban face of the BJP, Pramod Mahajan, is shot dead by his own brother.
2007:
- The BJP-SAD alliance regains power in Punjab, with the BJP winning almost all of its contested seats. In Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, the BJP regains power from the Congress, and posts its fourth consecutive victory in Gujarat. However, the party faces a major setback in Uttar Pradesh, where its tally dips to its lowest in 20 years and its traditional vote banks are eroded. The BJP-Shiv Sena alliance retain power in Mumbai's municipal corporation, while the BJP regains power in the Delhi municipal corporation.
- The Janata Dal (Secular) refuses to hand over the Chief Minister's post to the BJP as agreed upon, leading to the downfall of the alliance government in Karnataka. After the JD(S) decides to reverse its decision, B.S. Yediyurappa becomes the BJP's first southern CM. When the JD(S) once again goes back on its word after a week, Yediyurappa resigns.
- The party faces more tragedy as former Delhi CM Sahib Singh Verma dies in a road accident and former party President Jana Krishnamurthy passes away.
- The party approves of 33% reservation for women in all bodies of the party, including the National Executive, the first party in India to put forward such a measure.
- The party formally declares Leader of the Opposition, Lal Krishna Advani, as BJP's Prime Ministerial Candidate.
- Narendra Modi successfully fights anti-incumbency to win a third term in office as the Chief-minister of Gujarat.
- The party captures power in Himachal Pradesh, ousting the Indian National Congress, with Prem Kumar Dhumal becoming the Chief Minister.
- According to Tamil Nadu state BJP president L. Ganesan , BJP would form an alliance with AIADMK before the 2009 Tamil Nadu polls.
2008:
- B. S. Yeddyurappa leads BJP in Karnataka to victory in the 2008 Karnataka state elections gaining just 3 seats short of a majority. It is a historical win for BJP as it was able to form a government in South India without a Coalition and the victory is considered as Gateway to South-India by Party President Rajnath Singh.
Organisation
The BJP is one of the few parties in India to have a popular-based governing structure, where workers and leaders at the local level have a great say in much of the decision-making. This has also been blamed for public spats between different factions of the party.
The highest authority in the party is the President. Officially, the BJP constitution provides for a three-year term for the President. Recently, both Venkaiah Naidu and LK Advani resigned ahead of schedule due to circumstances. Rajnath Singh has held this post since January 2006. Beyond this, there are several Vice-Presidents, General-Secretaries, Treasurers and Secretaries. The National Executive consists of an undetermined number of senior party leaders from across the nation who are the highest decision-making body in the party. At the state level, a similar structure is in place, with every state unit being led by the respective President, who also officially serves a three-year term.
The rank-and-file leadership of BJP largely derives from the cadre of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which has millions of affiliates. It also maintains close links to other Sangh Parivar organisations, such as Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Swadeshi Jagaran Manch (an organisation promoting consumption of domestic goods over foreign imports).
Mass organisations associated with the BJP include:
Outside of India, BJP followers have formed the 'Overseas Friends of BJP'.
Ideology : Objectives and policies
BJP is often described as centre-right in nature. The concept of Hindutva has a special place in its ideology, with the party aiming to transform India in to a modern, progressive and enlightened nation which draws inspiration from India's ancient Hindu culture and values. As per the party's constitution the objectives of the party are explained thus:
"The party is pledged to build up India as a strong and prosperous nation, which is modern, progressive and enlightened in outlook and which proudly draws inspiration from India's ancient culture and values and thus is able to emerge as a great world power playing an effective role in the comity of Nations for the establishment of world peace and a just international order. The Party aims at establishing a democratic state which guarantees to all citizens irrespective of caste, creed or sex, political, social and economic justice, equality of opportunity and liberty of faith and expression.
The Party shall bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as by law established and to the principles of socialism, secularism and democracy and would uphold the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India."
Some of the professed goals of the BJP are:
- The Repeal of Article 370 of the Constitution, which prevents non-Kashmiris, including Hindus who have fled the area due to increasing terrorism, from owning property in the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
- The Promulgation of a Uniform Common Civil Code, which create only one personal and civil law code for Hindus, Muslims and Christians, who enjoy the privilege of having law codes tailored to their religious culture over personal and family matters. In the minds of BJP supporters, this system creates a sense of division in the country between religious communities.
- A Ban on Cow Slaughter, to honor the Hindu tradition of not consuming the flesh of cow, and prohibiting the consumption of beef.
- The Ban on Religious Conversions
- The Construction of the Ram Janmabhoomi temple in Ayodhya on the site of destroyed Babri Masjid.
- To achieve the full territorial and political integration of Jammu and Kashmir with India. Presently over 40% of the territory is under the control of Pakistan and China.
The BJP stands for strong national defense though it did not supported reorientation and improving the quality of training of the armed forces and nor it supported the amendment of the retirement plans for the armed forces which were recommended by the oversight committee , small government, and Quasi free-market](a market where only Indian companies can benefit)] economic policies, but [[Hindutva]] and [[Integral humanism]] have been its core philosophy and identity ever since its inception. The BJP stand on economic policies saw a sudden volte face in the mid nineties from a support of [[swadeshi]] products to the embracing of free market ideas.
Another important factor is the ongoing territorial dispute over Jammu and Kashmir and the wars of 1947-48, 1962, 1965, and 1971 and recently the 1999 Kargil War. The BJP and its supporters feel India must remain vigilant against threats from Pakistan, the People's Republic of China, and elsewhere such as Bangladesh and even LTTE from Sri Lanka.
Economic policy under BJP-led governments at the state and center has been heavily focused on infrastructure building thereby increasing the public debt which led to surmountable fiscal deficit and pro-reform,which is congenial to Indian interests and not necessary conforming to international regulations (like environment laws) market-oriented economic growth without making subtle changes to the existing policies.
Controversies and criticism
Ramjanmabhoomi
The party has been criticized for its direct involvement in the movement which culminated in the destruction of the disputed structure called Babri Masjid in favor of building the Ram Janmabhoomi temple. However, BJP said that it wanted the demolition of Babri Mosque through lawful process.
Communal violence
In 2002, The BJP had to deal with communal clashes that took place in Gujarat, after an attack by a Muslim mob on a train comprising mostly of Hindu pilgrims.. As a result, communal clashes erupted in Gujarat with the Muslim minority being targeted by mobs for retribution. The state government of Gujarat, in BJP control under the leadership of Narendra Modi, has been accused of helping the Hindu mobs, a charge it denies. The National Human Rights Commission criticized the government, pointing to "a comprehensive failure on the part of the State Government of Gujarat to control persistent violations of rights", while a judicial commission headed by G.T. Nanavati, a former chief justice of the Indian Supreme Court, constituted to examine allegations of Gujarat state administration's involvement in the riots of 2002 said that there was no evidence to implicate either Modi or his administration in the riots. Nevertheless, the central BJP-led government in Delhi condemned and called an end to the sectarian violence. Some of its National Democratic Alliance allies demande Modi's resignation and he did so before his party came to power again in the next election obtaining 127 seats out of the 184 seat legislative assembly. The issue is hotly-debated with one side contending that Narendra Modi and the BJP encouraged sectarian hatred, while the BJP itself vehemently denies the charge calling it politically-motivated posturing for Muslim votes. This issue was brought to the forefront when Sonia Gandhi, the leader of the Indian National Congress, called Narendra Modi a 'merchant of fear and death' in her party's 2007 Gujarat legislative assembly election campaign, a election which the BJP won again with a significant majority (117 out of 182 seats)..
Infighting
The party has seen the rise of regional 'personality' politicians with their own followers, and instances of infighting amongst the central leaders were publicized by the media. The aggressive courtship of celebrities, industrialists, sportspersons and other popular figures by the BJP has been a bone of contention with the RSS. After the BJP lost at the centre, some party leaders believed the reluctance of the RSS and its associate organizations to support an ideologically different party had led to the loss. This eventually led to the emergence of Rajnath Singh, a leader very close to the RSS, to the party President's post in 2006.
Unfortunately, his tactics of re-involving the RSS at every level of election management was disastrous in his native Uttar Pradesh, while strategies based around personality politics and economic reform led to victories in four other states that same year. Following this turn of events, the RSS publicly announced it would further limit its involvement in the BJP's decision-making process.
India shining advertisements
There has been controversy over the India Shining advertisements as whether the governments, States or Centre are not permitted to use taxpayer’s money to promote any political gain. The BJP government has spent an approximate cost of Rs. 500 crores for the advertisements campaign during 2004 Parliament elections.
Organisation Leadership
Leader of the Opposition, Lok Sabha
President
Former Presidents
Leader of the Opposition, Rajya Sabha
Vice-Presidents (12)
General Secretaries (6)
Treasurer
Secretaries (11)
Chief Ministers and Deputy Chief Ministers
- Narendra Modi,CM,Gujarat
- B. S. Yeddyurappa,CM,Karnataka
- Prem Kumar Dhumal,CM,Himachal Pradesh
- Shivraj Singh Chauhan,CM,Madhya Pradesh
- Raman Singh,CM,Chattisgarh
- B. C. Khanduri,CM,Uttarakhand
- Sushil Kumar Modi,DCM,Bihar
- The BJP is participating in coalition governments in Punjab but it does not hold the Deputy Chief Minister's post. It's legislative parties are led by Manoranjan Kalia.
Notable Public Figures In The Party
The BJP has a number of prominent public figures among its members, who have either campaigned for, contested elections for or held office for the party. The induction of celebrities into the party helped the party receive extra attention from the media and the public, but it has also received criticism from others, who have claimed that the celebrities knew little about politics or would create an image of elitism for the party.
Heirs to prominent political families:
Current BJP Administrations in the States
BJP-Ruled States Without Outside Support
- Himachal Pradesh Won 41 seats out of 68 seats
- Chattisgarh won 48 seats out of 90 seats
- Gujarat won 117 seats out of 182 seats
- Madhya Pradesh won 142 seats out of 230 seats
- Karnataka won 115 seats out of 224 seats (6 Independents also supported BJP)
Head of a Coalition Government
- Uttarakhand won 36 seats out of 70 seats (Allied with the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal and three independents). The BJP won its 36th seat when by-elections were held on August 29. Uttarakhand Chief Minister B.C. Khanduri won this seat. While the BJP now holds a majority in Uttarakhand, outside support for the government from the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal and three independents will continue.
Junior Partner in a Coalition With a National Democratic Alliance Partner (NDA)
Junior Partner in a Coalition With a Non National Democratic Alliance Partner (NDA)
Historically, the BJP has either led or allied to form state governments in: Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. It has also held power in the Union Territory of Delhi, one of two Union Territories to have a Legislature.
The BJP has never taken part in a state government in: Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Jammu & Kashmir, Kerala, Mizoram, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura and West Bengal, although in a few of these states, it has extended outside support to a ruling government. In most of these states, it has at least won some local elections.
See also
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