Himachal Pradesh BJP in-charge and former Rajasthan in-charge, Avinash Rai Khanna, has said that the ‘Lotus’ will bloom in Marudhara (Rajasthan) this time. In an exclusive interview with The Daily Guardian, he mentioned that the party has analyzed the reasons for the defeat in the previous elections and is moving forward based on that study. He also stated that the country needs strong leadership, and Prime Minister Modi is providing that. Following is the excerpt from the interview:
Q: In the last election, the BJP couldn’t form a government in Rajasthan. You were in charge of Rajasthan at that time. What do you see as the reasons for that defeat?
A: Well, in Rajasthan, elections have always been one-sided. When the public brings a party to power, they tend to give it a substantial number of seats. However, during the last elections, there was a prevailing perception that the government doesn’t repeat in Rajasthan. We couldn’t break that perception. People were saying that BJP would be restricted to just 20 seats. But we managed to win more than 70 seats. We were very close to victory. In the previous election, we lost by a small margin, based on the percentage of votes. Today, our organization is well-prepared. The decisions made by the central government and strong leadership will be significant factors in the upcoming elections.
Q: In Rajasthan, there are often questions about the CM’s face. You are currently in charge of Himachal Pradesh. Does announcing a CM face before the election have any advantages or disadvantages?
A: The BJP is a democratic party. Decisions are made by consensus. The choice of who will be the leader is decided by the legislators. When the election will take place in December, and the legislators will be chosen then only. How can the leader of the legislative party be chosen before that? At the end of the day, the public is well aware of who is leading the election. Our party is cadre-based. The legislators decide who their leader will be, and that person becomes the Chief Minister. Our party contests elections with the symbol of the lotus, and everyone seeks votes under that symbol.
Q: At the end of this year, elections will be held in five states. How do you see the BJP’s position in these states, especially in Rajasthan?
A: If I talk about Rajasthan, the BJP is going to form a government with a significant margin this time. One of the reasons for this is that the Congress is divided here. The promises made in their election manifesto are yet to be fulfilled. The state government’s functioning is not up to the mark. Women are not safe in the state. In such a situation where people don’t feel secure, a government cannot be re-elected.
Q: The BJP is describing women’s reservation as historic, while the Congress and the ‘I.N.D.I.A’ alliance are saying that the government’s intentions are not clear. Therefore, this reservation is not being implemented immediately.
A: In the new Parliament, we have taken the first step towards honouring women. That is, we passed the Women’s Reservation Bill. When it comes to women’s empowerment, you see that our party has provided 33 per cent reservation for women at the central level. We have implemented it first in our party. However, the legal process takes time. Before implementing reservations, scrutiny is necessary. Discussions have already begun for all these matters. It will be determined through scrutiny which seats will be reserved for women.
Q: In the previous elections, BJP lost in Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh, and Punjab went to the Aam Aadmi Party. Don’t you think the Prime Minister’s popularity is declining even though he held numerous rallies in these states?
A: Prime Minister Modi has a global presence in politics. The way the G20 Summit was organized by the prime minister and then taken to the terrorism-affected Kashmir, has garnered international attention. Today, the world recognizes Kashmir as an integral part of India. This reflects the Prime Minister’s visionary approach. When it comes to election losses, there are several factors at play. In Himachal, we lost by a margin of less than one per cent. It becomes challenging to make calculations in such situations.
Q: Recently, in Jaipur, the National President of the Congress, Mallikarjun Kharge, said that the BJP puts forth four candidates in front of our candidate during elections. Allegations of misuse of constitutional institutions are often made against your party. What do you have to say?
A: You see, wherever a raid has taken place, there has been a recovery. Tell me one place where action has been taken just to harass someone. Every agency has its own system. We have our government at the centre, but agencies function independently. They have their own procedures for investigation. In such a situation, why is the Congress afraid? It is beyond comprehension. When the Aam Aadmi Party’s ministers were raided, there was a big uproar. If the investigating agencies had no evidence, those involved would have been granted bail. Those who have looted the public need to face the truth. If there is any trouble with the agency’s actions, the doors of the court are open to everyone.