Vasundhara Raje Scindia’s show of strength a message to BJP

Former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje Scindia, who had skipped the recently concluded ‘Parivartan Sankalp Yatra’ undertaken by the BJP in the desert state, where assembly polls I scheduled to take place in November/December this year, addressed hundreds of women at her residence on Saturday and though she praised prime minister Narendra Modi for the Women Reservation law, her subtlety failed to hide the message it sent to the BJP high command.

Vasundhara has reportedly been sulking after the BJP leadership refused to project her as the party’s Chief ministerial face in Rajasthan as demanded by her and her supporters.

The firebrand leader had maintained distance from the party’s ‘Parivartan Sankalp Yatra’ and charted her course as far as connecting to the electorate was concerned.

Although Vasundhara heaped praise on Modi for the enactment of a law to provide for reservation for the women in the Lok Sabha and assemblies and her criticism of the Ashok Gehlot led Congress government in the state at the meeting, the message was clear that she still commanded popular support and that she could not be ignored.

Vasundhara’s show of strength would certainly be a cause of worry for the BJP, which was nurturing dreams to return to power in the desert state. Even her detractors in the BJP admit that she is the most popular BJP leader in Rajasthan and perhaps the only state leader who can attract crowds in her meetings.

A rebellion by Vasundhara was certain to cost the BJP dearly in the forthcoming assembly poll but the party was in a fix over how to placate the outspoken leader who would not relent unless named the CM face of the party. It will certainly play to the advantage of the Congress.