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Hindutva hardliner takes over as Kerala BJP chief

Hindutva hardliner Kummanam Rajashekharan assumed office as president of the Kerala unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday, setting the stage for a communal polarisation in the state with a majority community population of 56 per cent.
The national leadership of the party picked up Rajashekharan, a full time pracharak of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), with the main aim of supplementing the efforts being made by backward Ezhava community leader Vellappally Natesan to unite the Hindus.
The Nair Service Society (NSS) that represents the upper caste Nair community has been resisting Natesan's attempts. The top BJP leadership feels that Rajashekharan will be able to take the NSS on board as he belongs to Nair community and maintains good relations with the NSS leadership. The party has also taken into consideration the close ties he has established with other Hindu groups as convenor of the Hindu Akiya Vedi (forum for the unity of Hindus). - news@khaleejtimes.com
as well as the efforts he made to strengthen various Hindu bodies like the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Kshethra Samrakshana Samiti and Balasadanams.
Rajashekharan, who shot into limelight by leading a successful a struggle against the move to set up a church at Nilakkal, which is on the way to Sabarimala Hindu shrine, gained wider acceptance by spearheading another agitation against establishment of an airport close to a temple at Aranmula in Pathanamthitta district.
The BJP national leadership hopes that this varied experience will help Rajashekharan to lead the party to the victory in the Assembly elections. However, a section of the state leadership that opposed his elevation feels that it may defeat their attempt to woo a section of the minority community.
The state leadership has been trying to win over the pro-Christian Kerala Congress (M), which is angry with the Congress that heads the ruling United Democratic Front (UDF) over the handling of the bar bribery case that led to the resignation of the party leader K M Mani from the ministry.
The state BJP leadership also fears that Rajashekharan's anointment may trigger a minority consolidation, which may help either the UDF or the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led opposition Left Democratic Front. They are not hopeful of achieving their objective of bringing the third front to power with the support of Hindus alone as they already affiliated to either fronts.
While majority of the Ezhava community that Natesan tries to bring under the Sangh Parivar are strong supporters of the Communist parties, a strong section of the Nair community owes their allegiance to the UDF.
The 'I' group in the Congress has been pitching ground for bringing Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala, who belongs to the Nair community, to the leadership position in order to ensure the continued support of the majority community.
The national Congress leadership may discuss the possibility of a leadership change when senior leaders from the state meet the high command on December 23 to discuss the political situation in the state.
news@khaleejtimes.com

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