Sunset at Noon

Planning 100 percent,
implementation 200 percent
By Prakash Javadekar

I had never thought I would one day have to speak about Pramod Mahajan in the past tense. Whenever a party worker praised him in gatherings he would say : “Between felicitation and homage there is only a difference of tense. What is called felicitation in the present tense becomes a homage when stated for the past”. But today the nation pays heartfelt homage to him.

During my thirty years’ association with him I was familiar with every aspect of him. He was a forceful orator, expert organizer, brilliant strategist, star parliamentarian and a good administrator. The most important aspect of him was he thought far ahead of the times and also moved with the time.

His five rupee udhar By Hema Malini BJP MP Hema Malini recalls fond memories of the late Pramod Mahajan “I feel terrible and low. He was like a backbone of our party. In fact he was a great supporter of mine. He was one of the key people instrumental in me joining the BJP. Though he didn’t know me then, he asked others in the party to approach me. When I agreed to join the party, I was asked to pay five rupees for a form that I was supposed to fill. I didn’t know the procedure so I hadn’t carried any cash with me to the party office. Pramod gave five rupees to me and said, ‘Yeh mera aap par udhar rahega.’ Today, I left a five rupee note near him. I felt so bad. I didn’t expect that I would be returning his favour in this manner. Just last month he and I had gone campaigning for our party throughout Assam. As usual, he had managed the whole thing beautifully. He had then said, ‘When we’re are back in Mumbai, I’ll come to your house for dinner one day.’ He wasn’t able to fulfil that promise. He was a dynamic and charming personality. I was an admirer of his oratory skills. But I was surprised at this man who could give speeches in front of thousands of people so confidently was actually such a shy person that he wouldn’t look up when he spoke to me. I always thought that was a very sweet aspect of his personality. All of us at the party are feeling really low by this loss. He had a great future.” As told to Shubha Shetty-Saha (Courtesy: Daily News & Analysis)

He well understood the changing political atmosphere in the country. In the 1990s Indian polity underwent a major change. He recognized the fact that no single party may get a majority at the national level. It was in this backdrop that coalition politics started. It was important then to remain in contact and enjoy the confidence of all. Personal contact and trust were vital for this, both of which Pramod Mahajan had for years. That is why he was pass master and highly successful in coalition politics.

I recall that in 1987 the Shiv Sena spread its influence outside Mumbai. Shiv Sena became a symbol of aggressive Hindutva. Promodji fully recognised this changing political reality. Until then the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Shiv Sena opposed each other politically and publicly. Pramodji thought of aligning with Shiv Sena but he knew that the party’s state unit office-bearers and the working committee would not agree to this. The working committee was divided on this issue, virtually half and half. It was a tough decision. Our guru, late Vasant Rao Bhagwat was alive at that time. He had a concept about politics and used to say: “Simply reacting to what may happen is not politics, instead real politics is to turn an expected situation to one’s advantage”. Pramodji adopted this mantra. In the office-bearers meeting he said that this was an important issue and it would not be right that just 20 to 25 people decide the matter. Thousands of party workers should also participate in the decision making. The logic was strong and everyone accepted it. Pramodji then travelled extensively in Maharashtra. A meeting was held in every district. Around 100 prominent party workers attended each meeting. Each party worker’s name, designation and his views on coalition were noted. Around 4,000 party workers participated in this first ever consensus effort among them. The large majority of them voted for the coalition. Party workers at the grass root level are quick to perceive changing times. Taking their opinion was not only healthy politics but also a good strategy. He was able to translate the late Bhagwatji’s teaching into a reality, turning the situation to his own advantage.

From 1990 till now in 2006 the coalition is continuing. It was because of this that in Maharashtra, which was considered a Congress stronghold, we were able to come to power in 1995.

In the BJP Pramodji had good relations with various political groups and greatly contributed to maintaining the unity among the NDA partners. As parliamentary affairs minister, he was successful in getting support from other parties as well. That is why his death has saddened the hearts of leaders from all political parties. He was a perfect example of one who could understand the need of coming times and accordingly chalk out a strategy.

As communications minister because of his tremendous foresight he ushered in a virtual communication revolution. The mobile phones were the domain of only the rich. The tariff was Rs 16 per minute for outgoing calls and Rs 8 for incoming calls. He was aware of the spread of mobile network in the world and realized its importance. It was difficult for him to bring in changes here as the Telecom Department then worked in conservative parameters and did not want to give up its authority. Pramodji used all his skills of persuasion and when needed assert himself to change all this. He took policy decisions and today we are seeing its results. From an auto-rickshaw driver to a vegetable seller, a milk man or a sweeper, today a whopping nine crore people have mobile phones. That was Pramodji’s farsightedness.

In 1993 the cable television was launched in India. Round the clock news channels also started. It became important to have a good TV presence, speak briefly and yet forcefully. This was a new trend for political leaders. Pramodji fully understood the new communication medium. World over the discussion programmes featured in TV channels got far greater response than speeches made in public meetings. He understood the importance of the TV medium and used it to project the BJP prominently and effectively. Here too he showed great ability to recognize the need of the hour and successfully adopt it.

Pramodji was a modern thinker. He realized the need to adopt new publicity techniques. In 1989 before the elections he gave me an audio cassette of Benazir Bhutto’s party which was based on popular film tunes and asked me to make something similar. Since then political video cassettes and catchy film tune audio cassettes have become an integral part of election publicity material in Maharashtra. In the elections in 2004 new techniques were tried out. Surveys, modern database, fact sheets were always handy with him. He realised the growing importance of modern management technology in every aspect of life and the party was the first to adopt many things.

He always took public meetings seriously. He prepared his speech in a manner as though each time it was a fresh speech. He not only jotted down the issues to be mentioned in the speech but also penned each sentence himself. I have seen him thirty years back making his full speech standing before a mirror before going for the meeting. He would note and keep a catchy sentence, a notable example, an interesting episode and sound logic. Even now in his house are several notebooks containing these.

He was a perfectionist. He emphasized the need to do everything properly. The organization and presentation at the BJP golden jubilee meet was managed well by him. Despite there being a competent team in Maharashtra, for a month he stayed at the meet venue. He meticulously paid attention to the smallest item, planned everything and successfully saw to their implementation. His slogan was: “100 per cent planning and 200 per cent implementation”.

(The writer is BJP’s National spokesperson)