In fact, it was a rude reality check for the BJP president. Shah realised, much to his chagrin, that his polarize-the-people-on-religious-lines tactics, which enabled him to conquer states like Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, simply won’t work in the southernmost secular bastion called Kerala. No wonder, Shah returned a frustrated and angry man, his mission having come a cropper.

Not surprisingly, the BJP boss took it out on the office-bearers of the state unit of the party. Reports have it that Amit Shah gave the state leaders a piece of his mind in his interaction with them. He made no secret of his displeasure at their dismal failure to make any appreciable headway in the state, although he felt there were several factors which favoured the party’s fast-track growth in the state.

The state BJP leaders were, however, not in agreement with the angry BJP boss. They confronted him with facts and figures showing the growth of the party over the years. But there was no reply to the question why the so-called fast growth did not reflect in the voting pattern in the Malappuram by-election, where the party was expecting to poll more than one and a half lakh votes. The party ended up a distant third with the addition of only a paltry thousand more votes to its kitty.

In a tongue-lashing which put the state leaders on the defensive, Shah told them that what mattered in the ultimate analysis was electoral victory. And in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the party must win at least two seats, he ordered.

Then came the candid confession: that Kerala cannot be won without reaching out to the minorities! Steps must be taken forthwith to woo the minorities by addressing their immediate concerns. That was the Shah fiat to the leaders and cadres. It is a delicious irony that the BJP boss now wants the Kerala unit to be on the job of wooing the minorities – a crime which he has been accusing the Congress and the left parties of committing!

It was in pursuance of this objective that Shah met Christian leaders of various denominations. But it is clear that the Christian leaders are still wary of the BJP. In the meeting, they drew Shah’s attention to the continuing attacks against Christians and Christian institutions across the country. What they left unsaid was this: unless there is a halt to these attacks, there can be no understanding or tie-up with the BJP. And all that the BJP president could give them was an assurance that their concerns and problems would be brought to the notice of the Prime Minister.

The response of the Muslims to Shah’s call was even more blunt. The national as well as the state leaders of Indian Union Muslim League(IUML) have said a resounding no to the BJP chief’s olive branch offer. There can be no understanding with a party and a government headed by it which interferes with even the food habits of the people in general and the minorities in particular. That is the burden of their song.

This being the ground reality, it will be a Herculean task for the BJP to realize its long-standing dream of opening its account in the Lok Sabha elections from the state. The party’s assessment is that it has a good chance of winning at least two Lok Sabha constituencies from the state: Thiruvananthapuram and Kasargod, the two districts where the BJP performed well in the State Assembly elections held last year.

The party’s ambitious expand-the-National Democratic-Alliance (NDA)-front in-Kerala plan has suffered a severe setback with even its only major ally in the state, the Bharat Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS), itself unhappy with the ‘big brother’ attitude of the BJP. Besides, the powerful general secretary of the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yoglam(SNDP) Vellappally Natesan, who had cosied up to the BJP in the past, is in a BJP-baiting mood these days. And despite their public pronouncements to the contrary, leaders of the BDJS, the political wing of the SNDP, won’t go against Vellappally’s wishes when it comes to the crunch. Other potential allies of the BJP have adopted a wait-and-watch attitude.

No wonder, Amit Shah returned from Kerala in a blue mood. Conquering Kerala is easier said than done. The stellar performance of the secular fronts headed by the CPI(M) and the Congress has made this clear. The scales have fallen from Amit Shah’s eyes. And the BJP boss has come to the painful conclusion: that a BJP government in Kerala will remain a mere gleam in the eyes of the BJP leaders and cadres for many more years. (IPA Service)