It has already been revealed in this column about how Vedic pundits of Kashi and south India are being taken to Japan to organize a Maharudra yagya there, so that the new generation in Japan can be given a positive environment. With the initiative of Texas-based Vedic Yagya Centre in the US, and a request from Japan government, 108 knowledgeable pundits from Kashi and south India, two acharyas, 10 pundits on stand-by, and 15 assistants, will start this Maharudra Yagya from October 21, Japan time, from 8 am, which will go on non-stop until Sunday, October 23, 2016, 9 pm. Sources say the Indian government has given the green signal to these pundits’ Japan trip, and it is speculated that several prominent Cabinet ministers from the Modi government will be present to see them off at the Delhi airport. Several pundits who are to be a part of this yagya have been invited by Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan for Ujjain’s Kumbh. It is estimated that these Vedic pundits will do the Rudra Swahakar Yagya from May 17-20. The main roots of this yagya are elements such as money, rudra (dev), and letting go (tyaag). A reliable source says that seeing the way Shivraj is embroiled in a fresh controversy everyday, he might have come up with the yagya to address and overcome them.

It seems Zee TV’s Subhash Chandra has got only disappointment at the hands of the BJP. Maybe that is the reason he is now a part of the Mulayam durbar’s nine ratnas. Sources say the BJP people had promised this media mogul that he will be given a Rajya Sabha seat from the Haryana quota. But when that didn’t happen, Chandra went to meet Mulayam with the help of his dear friend Amar Singh. With his assistance, Chandra’s meeting with Mulayam was pretty satisfactory, and after consultation with this son Akhilesh, Mulayam had Chandra speak to him as well. Thereafter, Subhash Chandra and Amar Singh jointly hosted the reception party of Mulayam’s younger brother Shivpal Singh Yadav’s son, in Delhi. Initially it was thought that reception will be hosted at Amar Singh’s 10-acre farm in Mehrauli. But later, the venue was changed to Chandra’s residence at 4, Bhagwan Dass Road. To make the occasion really special, Amar Singh had invited the President, prime minister, and several Cabinet ministers; several noted film personalities were also invited. But the presence of VVIPs was next to nothing; among film personalities, too, only Sridevi-Boney Kapoor, and Jaya Prada were seen. Incidentally, Sridevi and Boney Kapoor happened to be in Delhi that day, where the shooting for an upcoming movie by Sridevi was on. UP’s CM Akhilesh was at the programme for a fairly long time, and he too identified with the feelings of other guests that these two hosts were trying to hitch a ride on the bicycle to reach the Upper House of the Parliament.

Influenced by the top man in Indian politics Narendra Modi and his election strategies, UP’s desi Yadav leaders, who have traversed the journey from wrestling to politics, are now thinking differently, too. For the 2017 election preparation, Mulayam has taken the services of the same American company that had worked shoulder to shoulder with Modi for his 2014 election strategy as well. This responsibility in 2012 had been with Mulayam, Akhilesh, and Ram Gopal Yadav. This time, it is the experts who will handle it all. In 2012 Assembly elections, the SP got 224 seats out of the 403 seats in the state. In all the public opinion surveys, this number has shrunk to less than 75. Thus, the biggest responsibility in front of the American company is to look at getting the SP numbers past 100. The company has already started its work, and as a first step, it is taking SP MLAs and other leaders to the US, where they will be taught the tricks of winning an election. Now the problem with SP MLA and leaders is that 60 per cent of them don’t know English very well. Seems like they will either come back after learning English, or how to win an election.

It’s the saffron times, and the party’s workers are reaping the profits. Their prosperity is increasing by leaps and bounds. When one of such BJP worker opened his pathology lab, he approached his Parliamentarian so that she could inaugurate it; the lady is also a known film actress. When he met her PA, he was told it will cost at least Rs 15 lakh. The shocked BJP worker reminded the PA that he had worked night and day for the Parliamentarian during elections. The PA thanked him for his efforts and said that although the rate for such dos is Rs 30 lakh, he has been given a 50 per cent discount. The shocked BJP worker went back to his town and had the mayor inaugurate his pathology lab.

The Amit Shah-Narendra Modi team is ready to repeat the Atal-Advani era. Nowadays, Modi is trying to become a liked-by-all person, while Amit Shah is playing the tune of overt Hinduism. Similarly, despite protests, the reins of Karnataka BJP were handed over to noted Lingayat leader B S Yedurappa. Yeddurappa is a tilak-adorning leader and is among those who advocate overt Hinduism. In UP, the Sangh is pushing for the name of Swatantra Dev Singh, but his name was not agreeable to UP’s heavyweight leader Rajnath Singh. So, BJP Parliamentarian from Phulpur, who is also a member of the aggressive Bajrang Dal, got lucky. He has also sold tea like Modi, and is now ready to bake his bread in the heat of aggressive Hindutva.

If you remember, Modi ji especially took the Japanese prime minister to his constituency Varanasi where he was given a warm traditional welcome. When the deputy mayor of Kyoto arrived in Kashi, the Modi bhakts claimed that in the days to come, Kyoto city too will become clean like Varanasi. Now, 150 pundits from Kashi will go to Japan on October 9 for nine days. Sources say that when the Japanese prime minister had come to India, he had mentioned three of his nation’s primary problems to Modi – natural disasters, the growing woes in Japanese families and the increasing rate of suicides among the youth in the country. As a developed nation looked up to India with the eyes of a pleader, our respected prime minister also took a couple of steps forward, and gave a spiritual solution. Now, 150 chosen pundits of Kashi will perform a non-stop yagna in Japan’s capital Tokyo for nine days, so that the Japanese environment can be cleansed. If sources are to be believed, the expenses of the trip by the 150 pundits is being borne by Japan itself. The passports have been made, and have to be sent to the Japan embassy for visas. A noted pundit from the group going to Japan spoke about the importance of Vedic yagya and said, “Yagya causes rains, rains cause harvest, and harvests mean prosperity for the people. What is new?”

Central Minister Venkaiah Naidu was known as the Hanuman of Advani era. Times changed, power changed hands, too, and Naidu, who is adept at changing himself, got immersed in Modi bhakti. He got so good that the one who was praised gave him newer avenues to explore. Be it the party podium, the party’s National Working Committee meeting, an open stage, or a meeting of Cabinet ministers, Venkaiah has emerged as someone who is a pro at Modi praise. But when it got too much, the Sangh had to intervene. Bhaiyaji Joshi and Dattatreya Hosboley called Venkaiah to the Sangh office and pulled him up saying he should not cross limits when it comes to praising Modi. Dattatreya went to the extent of saying there is no place for praise of any person in the Sangh. Venkaiah’s Rajya Sabha tenure is due to get over in the months to come, but what can he do? Trying to win a Lok Sabha election is a humongous task for him. Sources say he has expressed before Modi that if it is not possible to give him a Rajya Sabha seat, maybe his name can be considered as the next vice-president of India. What a team they will make then – Advani as the President, and his Hanuman as the vice-president. The old times will certainly be back.

Central Minister for Human Resources Smriti Irani may well have made the Sangh’s agenda in education a matter of honour, but one can sense the reactions to it in the education sector. Sources say that when the battle lines were drawn between Irani and various vice-chancellors of universities, 26 out of 26 vice-chancellors boycotted her meeting, and sent either the head of a department or someone else in their own place. Ms Minister had asked for resignations of only two vice-chancellors. Now she is calling for meeting according to different zones, but even in these meetings, the vice-chancellors are sending someone else in their own place. A few days ago, the news of differences between Smriti Irani and Aligarh Muslim University’s Vice-chancellor General Jameeruddin Shah made headlines. Sources say General Shah, without a prior appointment, went to meet Ms Minister with a bouquet of flowers and accompanies by his wife. This was not something Ms Minister liked, and they say she scolded General Shah at some point. The General was seen coming out of the meeting with tears in his eyes, saying he had served the country for 40 years, and he couldn’t take it that a woman who was his daughter’s age spoke to him in such a tone. As a result, Ms Minister now likes to meet the VC separately, one-on-one.

BJP’s top leadership’s entire focus is on the UP elections in 2017. Preparations have also started regarding the same. The BJP’s aim is to organize a big fund for the UP elections. Sources say that from BJP’s top leadership, a Parliamentarian from a seat adjoining that of Delhi, and who is also a prominent minister in Modi government has been given the responsibility to organize a meeting between some chosen industrialists of Noida and the party chief, so that the party treasury can get funds. On a set date, Mr Minister invited about 10 industrialists to his house, and the party head himself was to come. During the course of the conversation, the party head stated that in the 2017 elections in UP, it is the BJP that will form the government. A couple of industrialists present for high tea showed some courage and said that the other politicians they were meeting nowadays were making the same claim, and are asking for party funding accordingly. Be it the SP or the BSP, both parties feel they will stake claim in UP in the next elections. Sources say the party chief got upset at the industrialists’ audacity and said, “Forget the state, but don’t forget it is our government at the Centre.” This was indication enough and the moneybags respected the chief’s feelings accordingly.

In the past few days, not only has the BJP organization prabhari Krishna Gopal become more active within the party, he is also trying to come out of his predecessor Suresh Soni’s shadow. Along with Human Resource Minister Smriti Irani, he is working towards forwarding the Sangh’s education agenda. Just like his predecessor Soni, Krishna Gopal is also fairly fond of reading and writing. Although the list of books penned by Soni is fairly long, Krishna Gopal too has penned three significant books – “Vedon mein naariyan”, “Bharat ki sadhu parampara”, and “Prayag raj”. At the same time, he is also showing great interest in making efforts to work on the Sangh’s dream of a unitary schooling system. Due to such schools, the Sangh has increased its reach at the grassroots in states such as Chattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and north eastern states, especially Assam. Before being appointed the BJP’s organisation prabhari, Krishna Gopal was also the Sangh prabhari in the north-east, and was working towards increasing the Sangh’s reach in these states. The special thing about unitary schooling system is that one teacher alone is responsible for teaching and educating the children and also takes interest in health and hygiene issues in the area. It is believed that this times, the BJP is also reaping benefits from these schools being run by the Sangh in Assam.