Right Attacks Right

NEW DELHI: The black paint splattered liberally across his face made not just a good photograph for the ever-hungry media, but also served to focus attention on the on-off-on again profile of Sudheendra Kulkarni.

From a Marxist, or so he claims though not many remember him as an active representative of the pre-1996 era, Kulkarni joined the BJP and was a visible figure during the two governments led by Atal Behari Vajpayee. The closest to being an “intellectual”, a tribe that the BJP suffers a dearth of, Kulkarni would meet select individuals over a cup of coffee---over in the slightly sleazy coffee shops of the capital---to argue his conviction that a right wing polity was the only way forward. As time progressed, and the Vajpayee government settled into “Shining India” bliss, Kulkarni was seen as a key architect and supporter of government policies.

It was perhaps at this point where his ‘identity crisis’ was resolved, with Kulkarni writing speeches for the Prime Minister, and moving the government on the friendship with Pakistan track. His mentor, however, was L.K.Advani who Kulkarni remained loyal to, till date. He was a strong supporter of the Ayodhya movement, that led to the demolition of the Babri mosque. He was a Hindutva votary as such, supporting the leaders of the time, and hitching his wagon just three years ago to the Nitin Gadkari cart.

He had resigned from the BJP in 2009 but in 2012 his status has again changed to BJP member. Kulkarni met the Shiv Sena before the attack in a bid to convince it to allow the function to release the book of Pakistan’ s former foreign minister Khurshid Kasuri. He was clearly unable to convince them, and was attacked with the paint. And while he went ahead with the book release function with smeared face, the Shiv Sena too has justified the attack in its mouthpiece Saamna and compared him to 26/11 accused Ajmal Kasab who was hanged in 2012..

"If there are people like Kulkarni here there is no need for Pakistan to send the likes of Kasab. Kulkarni can do the damage of 100 Kasabs," the Sena has said in an editorial in its mouthpiece Saamna on Tuesday.

"Sudheendra Kulkarni proudly showed off his black face and his shamelessness. Patriots blackened the face of Pakistan's chamchas (sycophants)," the Sena said, adding that the "real threat" to the nation was from the likes of Mr Kulkarni, who were "killing patriotism."

"By praising Jinnah, Kulkarni dug a grave for BJP. LK Advani was very embarrassed then, Devendra Fadnavis should be careful," the Sena editorial said. Advani ran foul of the RSS in 2005 when he visited Pakistan and paid homage to Jinnah.

Kulkarni has been advocating peace with Pakistan and has been in the RSS sights in the past. He is a votary of right wing politics but clearly has failed to keep up with the times, where even Advani is taking the position of a ‘moderate’ on some issues such as relations with Pakistan.

The shift right has again been underlined by BJP MP from Baghpat Satyapal Singh who described the lynching of Mohammad Akhlaq in Dadri as a “small incident.” Akhlaq was dragged out of his house and beaten to death by a mob following rumours that he and his family had consumed beef.

A BJP lawmaker has described as a "small incident" the mob killing of a Muslim man in Uttar Pradesh's Dadri over rumours that he had beef in his house.

"A small incident like Dadri...our democratic atmosphere, our country is capable of handling it just fine. We don't need any outsider to lecture us," Satyapal Singh said. He was a former Mumbai police commissioner.