There are several instances of the heads of the Sangh who have passed adverse judgments against the BJP leaders as the party was its own political arm and the Sangh chief was the patron in chief. No Sangh chief had however ever gone public in brandishing leaders. The Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee was twice prevented from taking a major step, first of sacking the Modi government in April 2002 for collapse of his primary responsibility in protecting human lives and second occasion was signing of the Agra Peace Summit. Because of the Sangh interjection, he could not sign the peace accord with Pakistan. Though both interjections were conveyed by the senior leader Lal Krishna Advani, both the directives were known to have come from the Sangh chief.

The present chief Bhagwat went public not once but twice to disassociate the Sangh from the Prime Minister, his support base party. First time in March 2020 Bhagwat had declared at the public rally in Ranchi that the Sangh disassociated with the Prime Minister. The second occasion was his participatory address in the lecture series in May 2021 where he held the government and the administration as complacent in dealing with the corona pandemic. It was clear accusation of failure.

The party would as the political arm of the Sangh automatically need to follow up the accusation. The sudden imposition of the lock down may have deterred the party from it but the fresh accusation provides the opportunity of opposition. The party big wigs preferred to suffer humiliation of reduction of their political stature and remain in the council, hence they will need further goading to swing them in action. Even then, many believe they may not risk their future but that may bring the NaMo’s future in uncertainty.

Whether the party acts now or continues with Modi till next election due in 2024 or ensuring peace between the Prime Minister and the Sangh chief is merely a guess work, but it is certain that NaMo will not be the party nominee for the next election due to his own choice not to seek a third term or not fielded due to forced retirement. That probability spells uncertainty of his regime. The peace settlement would make him complete subservient.

It needs to be noted that he has not paid even courtesy call to the Nagpur establishment in 20 years and had defied the general body in August 2015. Earlier, he had served ultimatum on his then party chief Nitin Gadkari to send back Sharad Joshi back to the Sangh fold if he wanted him (NaMo) to attend the party conclave in Mumbai. NaMo ultimatum worked and Joshi was back to the Nagpur establishment fold.

Many would naturally be curious to know why the Sangh chief had even sidelined objection of the party senior Lal Krishna Advani to selection of NaMo to lead the party campaign for the 2014 poll. The young generation had opted for NaMo and threatened to split. NaMo revealed his preference only after Bhagwat had endorsed his name. He indicated his priority was poor masses and not divinity. The Sangh could not believe perhaps in possibility of his success by sidelining the divinity. Young of India surprised everyone by giving NaMo a clear mandate.

In his campaign, stress for the Modi government and not seeking vote for the BJP, he had dug the burial pit for the party. The limitless enthusiasm at the party headquarters with many prominent personalities joining the BJP was in total contrast to the absence of enthusiasm prior to the 2019 poll. The contrast told the growing distance.

The 2014 poll outcome was much more than a clear verdict to NaMo. Indian voters conveyed their preference for their hands and efforts for improving their economies to the divine assistance. NaMo had told no charity in his rule. Everyone would have to work hard and pay fully for every service and facility to be provided by the government. At the other end was lure of charity of two programmes that would cost tax payer’s Rs. 2.5 lakh crore every year.

NaMo amassed 283 seats even with 31 per cent votes but it was enough to convey that Indian young preferred hard toil to soft options of the divinity assistance. Unlike others he had not vote of a party majority but for one man rule. His plea had popular sanction to cause dismay more in the winning side than in defeated forces. His mopping up the overwhelming number of seats in two states that had ousted the upper castes from power corridors based on force acquired through consolidation of other backward classes was the clear indication of social transformation of poor classes.

In formation of the structure for his regime, NaMo left no one in doubt of his intension of one man rule. By dwarfing his colleagues through cutting down their stature and reducing their political authority, he left no one in doubt of his politics, and certainly not to those with bare minimum understanding of political stances of his style. It is difficult to identify the real purpose of his score of visits to other countries, the fact remains he could not lure foreign capital to invest in India to facilitate him to deliver his election promises of accelerated pace of economic growth. He did receive great acclamation of Indians settled in different countries like he did from the middle classes in India. They were happy and under impression that NaMo has finally delivered them from yoke of politics for lower classes only.

He remained mute in his response to the Sangh efforts to draw him back to the old party platform. He adopted a defiant posture as his national address from the Red Fort indicated. The defiant posture soon became the deep gorge of differences between him and the Sangh chief. Every effort was to frustrate him in his game plan. The uncertainty deep inside has now come to surface leaving him no option but to break away before he is further humiliated. With his unceremonial departure.

He won mandate on a promise of accelerated pace of growth. In seven years he achieved the accelerate pace of economic devastation by his three prohibitory steps, the demonetization, the yearlong lockdown and cap on the lending by banks. All that was achieved in seven decades was washed down in seven years.