Will the BJP’s Hindutva card work in the Telangana Assembly elections? The BJP including Prime Minister Modi are advocating the Hindutva agenda in the Karnataka Assembly elections. If the BJP succeeds in Karnataka it will use the Hindutva card in Telangana too.
Political observers are debating whether the Hindutva agenda will help the BJP or not in TS. According to the latest figures in Telangana, 85.09% of the population are Hindus. The Muslim population is 12.92% and Christians 1.87%.
Even though the Hindu population is the highest percentage-wise, there is no unity among them like among Muslims and Christians. At the same time, the voting percentage of Muslims and Christians is higher than that of Hindus.
Due to the Hindutva agenda, the BJP may lose the support of the 15% Muslims and Christians. Unlike in the past nowadays many politicians from other parties are joining the BJP. In the past, most BJP leaders had RSS, VHP and Bajrang Dal backgrounds. The politicians who joined the BJP recently have no Sangh Parivar background.
For example, the BJP MLA Eatala Rajendar has a Communist background. They might feel uncomfortable if the BJP follows the Hindutva agenda during the Assembly election
Old school BJP leaders think that their party is a Hindutva party. But the politicians who joined the party recently consider the BJP as a secular party.
It is difficult for such leaders to adjust in the BJP for long as they cannot digest the BJP’s Hindutva agenda BJP. These political leaders think that even if the BJP follows the Hindutva agenda there is no guarantee that all Hindus will support it.
The Hindutva card may help in places where Muslims are more. But in Telangana, there is no clear dividing line between Hindus and other religions.
In Telugu states, caste-based politics dominate over religion-based politics. During elections, people go by caste than by religion. If the BJP strongly endorses the Hindutva agenda the BRS may try to ignite the Telangana sentiment and in the tussle between the T-sentiment and Hindutva, the latter may lose out.
