Shimla/New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has come up with a plan to keep actor Kangana Ranaut, its candidate from Mandi Lok Sabha seat in Himachal Pradesh, away from controversies till the conclusion of the general election, ThePrint has learnt.
From strict instructions asking her to stick to one-line statements and focus instead on issues like the work of the Modi government and women empowerment to lists of media outlets that can interview her and senior leaders who would accompany her during programmes, the BJP is taking a host of measures to shield Kangana from controversies.
The BJP plan for Kangana became necessary also because a number of local party functionaries were unhappy with a “parachute” candidate being fielded from Mandi, and some have been maintaining a distance from programmes organised for her.
“During public programmes, when the media asks her for comments, she has specific instructions on what she should speak about and that she should not speak about anything else, even if the media asks other questions,” said one Himachal Pradesh BJP functionary.
The functionary added that in the case of media interactions, the state BJP unit has been given specific instructions to seek approvals for her programmes ‘directly’ from the central leadership to ensure no “unwanted comments” are made by her.
Earlier this week, Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma came to Kangana’s defence after a video of her calling Subhas Chandra Bose the first Prime Minister of India in a TV interview went viral. In a post on X, Sarma wrote Friday, “To those mocking @KanganaTeam — On 21 October 1943, Netaji established the Azad Hind Govt, of which he was the head, nearly 4 years before Pt Nehru took oath as Prime Minister following transfer of power.”
To those mocking @KanganaTeam 👇
On 21 October 1943, Netaji established the Azad Hind Govt, of which he was the head, nearly 4 years before Pt Nehru took oath as Prime Minister following transfer of power.
Nine countries recognised the Azad Hind Govt as the legitimate… https://t.co/keSVDxbQBf
— Himanta Biswa Sarma (Modi Ka Parivar) (@himantabiswa) April 5, 2024
The BJP has similarly been on guard since last week after Kangana Ranaut called Prime Minister Narendra Modi the “ansh” (descendant) of the Hindu deity Ram during a public meeting at Sarkaghat in Mandi district, drawing sharp reactions on social media.
“A controversy broke out recently when, during a public programme, Ranaut likened PM Modi to Lord Ram… At a time when the party is focusing on the Ram Mandir construction as one of its major poll planks, making such statements will only give ammunition to the Opposition,” a party leader said on condition of anonymity.
The BJP, said the leader, wants her to highlight issues related to women in a manner that resonates across the country because she is a national figure. Her one casual statement can affect the focus of this election, the leader added.
Also read:Disgruntled MLAs & a reticent CM — storm in Himachal Congress has been brewing for a long time
‘Any loose statement could prove fatal’
According to a BJP source, to keep Kangana Ranaut out of controversies, the party initially asked her to refrain from giving any one-to-one interviews but later came up with a pruned list of media outlets that she can give interviews to.
“This is election time, and any loose statement could prove fatal. Ranaut is an artist and does not understand how political campaigns work. She is not used to all this. She can easily be instigated to give any controversial statement. So, it has been decided that she would not give exclusive interviews for now, barring a few,” said the source.
The BJP, for now, is hand-holding her and ensuring senior leaders, including former Himachal Pradesh chief minister Jairam Thakur, accompany her during public interactions.
Another leader said that after Congress leader Supriya Shrinate made derogatory remarks against Kangana, the BJP is focusing on turning it into an election issue.
“We want to focus on how ‘Himachal ki beti (Himachal’s daughter)’ was humiliated and don’t want to shift it to other things. Whenever Ranaut goes to public programmes, senior leaders accompany her. She is informed before the programme the line she has to take during the public and media interaction,” said another leader.
Wearing a Himachali cap, Kangana Ranaut is often spotted wooing Mandi voters by speaking in the local Mandyali dialect. The BJP central leadership has asked the state unit to keep the focus on her local Himachali identity by amplifying the “Himachal ki beti” tag.
Meanwhile, a senior BJP leader told ThePrint that Kangana has to contest on many fronts. “Some local leaders are unhappy with the party’s decision to field her from Mandi. Moreover, workers are not enthused, which was expected after she got the ticket. So everyone is waiting for her to make one small mistake, and they can amplify it.”
Among the claimants from the seat is senior local BJP leader Ajay Rana who remained a ticket contender from the Mandi Lok Sabha segment throughout his political career.
“Ajay Rana’s name has been in the ticket panel since 1998. He is considered close to the former CM P.K. Dhumal’s family, but that does not make him less eligible for the ticket,” a senior party leader told ThePrint on condition of anonymity.
Mandi Lok Sabha seat comprises 17 assembly segments — Kinnaur, Lahaul and Spiti, and Bharmour in Chamba district; Kullu, Manali, Banjar and Anni in Kullu district; Sundernagar, Balh, Mandi, Darang, Jogindernagar, Nachan, Seraj, Karsog and Sarkaghat in Mandi district; and Rampur in Shimla district.
‘All issues will be ironed out’
Asked about Kangana Ranaut’s candidature, former BJP state president Maheshwar Singh, who told ThePrint that he has asked the central leadership to review its decision to field her from Mandi, said: “The party has changed a lot. Now, tickets are distributed in the guise of surveys. Everyone knows how these surveys work. I have nothing more to say.”
Scion of the erstwhile princely state of Kullu, Maheshwar Singh is a former three-term Lok Sabha MP, former one-term Rajya Sabha MP, former BJP state president and one-term MLA from Kullu assembly segment. He is also the head of Raghunath Temple, which houses the chief deity of the Kullu region. Moreover, Singh has influence in the “Dev Samaj” of Kullu.
In the past, he has defeated former CM Virbhadra Singh and wife Pratibha Singh from Mandi. His daughter-in-law is a Zila Parishad member from Banjar, and his son contested assembly polls as an Independent in 2022 from Banjar securing nearly 15,000 votes.
Maheshwar Singh’s son Hiteshwar Singh, former BJP general secretary Ram Singh, and former Anni MLA Kishori Lal had reportedly held a meeting with other disgruntled state BJP leaders to chalk out a strategy for the elections soon after the party declared Kangana as its candidate from Mandi, making the battle a difficult one for the actor-politician.
There is also a fear among state BJP leaders that most of the state unit and its functionaries may get involved in ensuring the success of Kangana’s programmes while ignoring other constituencies.
At the same time, the BJP, it is learnt, is also trying to pacify a number of disgruntled leaders at the state level. Among them is Ram Lal Markanda, former state minister who quit the party to contest from Lahaul and Spiti assembly seat after the BJP fielded Congress rebel Ravi Thakur from the seat in the bypoll slated for 1 June.
A state BJP leader said on condition of anonymity, “All leaders who are unhappy with the party should be pacified. Otherwise, it could impact the party’s prospects in the longer run.”
Himachal Pradesh BJP president Dr Rajiv Bindal told ThePrint, “BJP is a disciplined party. As far as Kangana Ranaut is concerned, she will win the Mandi seat.”
Asked about disgruntled party leaders, he said, “Some leaders may have issues, and we will resolve them. BJP is like a family, and all the issues will be ironed out.”
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)
Also read:Bypolls, tickets for Congress rebels & uneasy cadres — Himachal BJP stares at tricky road ahead