The Manufactured Succession Debate: A Counter to Rajdeep Sardesai’s Wishful Thinking

In his latest piece, Rajdeep Sardesai attempts to spin an elaborate narrative about a supposed power struggle between BJP heavyweights Amit Shah, Yogi Adityanath, and the RSS, using Mohan Bhagwat’s recent remarks on retirement as a “trial balloon” to fuel speculation. But what lies at the core of this argument isn’t analysis — it’s wishful thinking masquerading as commentary.

BJP : A Cadre-Based Party, Not a Family-Run Fiefdom

First and foremost, BJP is, and has always been, a cadre-based party where leadership transitions are institutionalized, orderly, and democratic. Successive BJP presidents have been elected through intra-party mechanisms, reflecting an internal culture of meritocracy, a stark contrast to dynastic outfits like the Congress, where leadership is inherited, not earned, and decisions are dictated by a single family for generations.

The smooth transfer of responsibilities to the next generation within the BJP is not new; it is embedded in its ethos. Be it Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s graceful handover of the baton or the rise of Modi himself through the organizational ranks, BJP’s succession model has always been a study in contrast to the entitlement-driven politics of Congress and its regional clones.

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RSS – BJP Relationship : Misunderstood and Maligned

The attempt to portray rifts between BJP and RSS or between Modi-Shah and Yogi Adityanath is part of a larger pattern, media commentators projecting their own biases as insider knowledge. The BJP and RSS share an organic relationship, bound by ideological roots and mutual respect. The decisions regarding leadership, succession, and organizational matters are for the BJP and the Sangh Parivar to determine, not for Lutyens‘ echo chambers to dictate.

Mohan Bhagwat’s remarks about 75 being a good age for retirement is a philosophical musing, not a diktat aimed at destabilizing Modi’s leadership, a leadership that remains pivotal to the BJP’s political dominance today.

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Liberals’ Underlying Wish : Modi’s Exit, By Any Means

At the heart of Rajdeep’s piece lies the unmistakable liberal yearning for Modi’s exit from Indian politics, if not electorally, then through contrived debates like age caps and succession plans. Their obsession with Modi’s age reeks of desperation, especially after their electoral narrative has been consistently rejected by the people.

This obsession ignores political reality: A CSDS post-poll survey after the 2024 elections confirmed that nearly one-fourth of BJP voters chose the party specifically because of Narendra Modi. Modi’s centrality to BJP’s national appeal is undeniable, and no amount of editorial pontification will change that.

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The Media’s Manufactured Rifts Will Remain Just That

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Unlike Congress and its allies, where leadership is hostage to the whims of private dynasties – the BJP is fully capable of managing its leadership transitions with maturity and discipline. The RSS does not need media pundits to interpret or amplify its signals.

This constant spinning of imaginary rifts between Modi, Shah, Yogi, and the Sangh is nothing more than the reflection of an entrenched bias and a desperate wish: that somehow, Modi can be removed from the scene without electoral defeat.

But BJP and RSS will chart their own course, on their terms, through their internal processes, just as they always have. The liberal commentariat would do well to introspect on why their narratives consistently fail to resonate with the electorate rather than manufacturing cracks that simply do not exist.

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