There is no doubt the CM of UPYogi’s tenure will be marked by dramatic changes in social equations in UP. Adityanath’s ascent to power will see a drive towards complete subjugation of Muslims in UP, which has become a sort of a Hindutva sport.
The BJP could have achieved the same outcome, quietly, with any other chief minister, but only Adityanath can turn that subordination into a spectacle that affords the satisfaction to those who say that if Muslims have to live in India they have to live on terms the Sangh spells out.
The dynamics between Adityanath and Narendra Modi will be interesting to watch. The Yogi’s appointment may have already slightly dented Modi’s standing among sections of middle class that back the Prime Minister. This section, which fervently believes that Modi knows what is good for India, will wonder if Adityanath is indeed the vehicle of progress that the country needs.
The Sangh Parivar would be aware of this trade-off and may have gambled that the Yogi’s contribution to changing the ideological climate of the country and getting the citizens used to his mode of Hindutva governance offer structural benefits that outweigh embarrassments to the Prime Minister – who, anyway, inhabits a hallowed post-scrutiny space in Indian public life.
This plan works if Adityanath proceeds with his churning in UP in ways that does not affect PM Modi and if he bides his time for the national stage. He may not pitch to be Prime Minister yet but also would not be entirely comfortable with his subordinate status for long.
The BJP-RSS have co-opted the Yogi in recent years but he has demonstrated his independence by floating his own Hindu Yuva Vahini. An ideological figure spearheading a symbolic movement from a chief minister’s office in India’s largest state becomes a power centre in his own right and will be an awkward proposition for Modi to handle.
Adityanath will do what he will in UP, lurching India further to the Right, while affording Modi a measure of plausible deniability. The choice of the Yogi also suggests that for the Sangh no individual is greater than the cause – and thus it may now be time to invest in the future. It took 12 years for Modi to become Prime Minister from 2002.
All perhaps building up for 2029 when Modi will be 78 and Adityanath only 55.
