For the last two days, BJP cadre and supporters across the country have been celebrating the party’s stunning win in the Lok Sabha elections. But amidst this celebration, the BJP's Tamil Nadu unit is squirming in discomfort. Not only did the party lose the Kanyakumari seat that it had won in 2014 but it also saw its vote share dive from 5.56% in 2014 to 3.66% in 2019.
'Central leadership ignored TN'
Tamil Nadu is a state where the BJP faces the people’s unrestrained anger. AIADMK leaders believe that having the BJP as part of the alliance spoilt whatever chances of victory they had. Other than being unpopular in the state, BJP leaders say that the lack of a sustained growth plan also impacted the party's prospects.
Surprisingly, two BJP leaders TNM spoke to argue that the Dravidian ideology in the state and Tamil pride are not the biggest hurdles for the party in the state. They believe that ensuring mainstream media starts supporting the BJP's ideologies can help change perceptions.
Speaking to TNM on the condition of anonymity, a BJP leader says, "We could have done well in Tamil Nadu if the Centre had played its cards right. Honestly speaking, president Amit Shah did not pay Tamil Nadu the attention he gave to West Bengal, Odisha and North Eastern states. He did not think any investment would yield rewards here. So, there was not enough money and resources released."
Another senior BJP leader further points out that the BJP leadership in the Centre was impatient with Tamil Nadu. In other states where the BJP was trying to create inroads, senior national level leaders were made to personally oversee the election preparation and the growth was seen gradually, according to the source.
"From 2013, a leader like Kailash Vijayvarghia sat with state leaders in West Bengal and strategised for the years to come," points out the senior leader. Kailash, who is originally from Indore, was later appointed as the BJP chief in West Bengal in 2015. "In the 2016 State Assembly elections we got 10% vote share in Bengal. Following that, we got 18% in in the 2018 panchayat elections. And now look, the BJP has won 18 seats in that state," he adds.
In Tamil Nadu, however, he says there were no such sustained efforts.
"We had Prakash Javadekar, Piyush Goyal and Bhupendra Yadav come here for short periods of time but they left before they could make a mark," he says. "There was no long term vision for Tamil Nadu and even the state leadership did not work towards building BJP as a brand," he adds.
Infighting in state leadership
According to sources in the TN BJP, multiple factions that exist within the party also proved to be its undoing this election.
"Many state party leaders do not get along and hardly consult each other. While we respect state BJP President Tamilisai Soundararajan, she is largely considered to be autocratic," says the BJP leader. "Tamilisai and Pon Radhakrishnan are always at loggerheads even to make the smallest district appointments. In addition to this, leaders such as H Raja, Vanathi and CP Radhakrishnan all have their own factions," he adds.
Moreover, BJP insiders believe the state leadership is not making way for new blood in the party. For instance, CP Radhakrishnan has been representing the party in Coimbatore from 1999 and H Raja, the National Secretary, has been contesting since 1996. Both leaders lost this election to candidates from the DMK alliance by a difference of over two lakh votes.
"The same set of leaders contest over and over again. In Coimbatore, for instance, if Vanathi Sreenivasan had been allowed to stand, there would have definitely been a fighting chance," says the BJP leader.
He adds that the lack of a digital campaign led to the loss of close to three lakh first time voters.
"In the 2014 election, the BJP alliance managed to secure the support of several first time voters. But because the state leadership did not work on sustaining this voter base, they all switched to Kamal Haasan's Makkal Neethi Maiam this time around," he claims. "In Kerala, we have powerful leaders but the religious demographics work against us. In Tamil Nadu, we have an advantageous demography but leaders have proven to be unsuccessful," he adds.
'Handled issues badly'
Acknowledging the immense anti-Modi wave in Tamil Nadu, both the sources agree that problems for the party began from the jallikattu protest.
"We constantly made mistakes. Take the jallikattu ban, for instance. It was ordered by the Supreme Court but blamed on the Centre. Or even Sterlite - it came during the DMK-Congress regime but we were facing the blame for it," says the senior leader. "Everyone including the party president began talking to the media and defending the BJP before doing any research on the matter," the senior leader adds.
However, in some aspects, these insiders concede that the Centre could have paid more attention to the state - whether it was on the issue of farmers protesting in Delhi or the cyclones that devastated Tamil Nadu.
Perhaps to counter this image of neglect, the Prime Minister visited the state four times in March alone to flag off various projects. But the leaders agree, it was too little too late.
"Even loose statements made by leaders like H Raja has cost us votes dearly," says the BJP leader. "We didn't realise then but we see its effect on ground now," he adds.
Need new leaders?
With Tamilisai now having completed her five year term (including two years as ad-hoc president) as party president, BJP sources say that a change in leadership seems imminent. Amongst those vying for the post are KT Raghavan (state secretary), Vanathi Srinivasan (general secretary), H Raja (national secretary) and CP Radhakrishnan (former state chief).
"But now even Pon Radhakrishnan may want to take over since he has lost his MP seat," say BJP sources. "He was a good leader for the state BJP between 2009 and 2014 and really helped the party grow. He was the one who brought back Hindu Munnani and RSS leaders back into the party's fold. He enthused cadres by holding grand meetings across the state and helped the party secure a seat in 2014," he says.
And while a change is certain, it is likely to be delayed till changes are made in the party's national posts. Insiders believe the party also needs younger spokespersons to represent them in the state.
"We cannot afford to come across as arrogant in Tamil Nadu just because we are powerful in the Centre," says the BJP leader. "We need to work towards making logical arguments and pushing our development agenda."