If 2014 elections were all about Modi, the 2019 elections are also about Amit Shah aka Shahnakya, the Party President and the long term Modi loyalist, if not more! From taking the primary membership numbers of party to record levels that makes BJP the largest party in the world to expanding their presence in uncharted territories like North East, Bengal and Odisha and taking dominant positions there in short time over the last five years, what makes his contribution so special is the way Amit Shah goes about it.
To inspire several millions of karyakartas or party workers, RSS cadres, and other non party volunteers who support the party and Modi on social media, especially facing the ground challenges like the violent attacks and killings of so many party workers in Bengal and Kerala, his micro-level management of booth to booth data analysis and candidate selections or alliance management accordingly, to rein in back his allies who were bursting on the seams and more importantly taking hardcore challenges like Mahaghatbandhan in UP where it is not easy to overcome the caste politics and electoral arithmetic of SP-BSP alliance, head on, by upfront stating that they would target 50% vote share and achieving that, all of these make his work superhuman and astonishingly spectacular. His supreme confidence even in the face of electoral reverses last year in MP, Chattisgarh and Rajasthan state elections by stating these would be corrected in the Loksabha elections, and retaining more than 90% of the seats won last time around and add on to that to make it 300 plus score this time for just BJP alone is what makes him so special and why he is the real Man of the Match.
And this when he had to face his own personal battles of several libelous allegations and abuses by Media and Opposition, old cases of fake encounters being reopened, new allegations like Justice Loya death being foisted as murder even when their own kin were saying it was natural death, calumny spread about his son Jay Shah’s businesses et al. Unlike Modi who is single and devoted 24×7 for the service of the country, Amit Shah is a family man and yet he was no less in terms of his commitment and dedication and did as many rallies or roadshows as Modi did or even more! To be so steadfastly focussed on just his work on a mission-mode like a true Karmayogi and maintaining his calm and steely nerve isn’t easy. What more, Shah is even better at repartees and takes Press head on unlike Modi. That too with his nonchalant deadpan face and the unmissable wry sense of humour.
Like the way he took a dig at Chandrababu Naidu, yesterday in the victory speech – by saying, had Naidu spent half the time he spent running around between Opposition party leaders, for getting some votes for himself and his party, TDP could have done much better! That simply summarises Shah’s philosophy of uncompromising hard work on the ground and connect with the cadres and masses amidst all distractions regardless of the final result.
