I have written an article which was published in Chhtrarth. It got very good response. So I am posting it here. Please offer your comments. NaMo Campaign and Principles of War War is a confrontation of thoughts, ideology and value systems. What we understand by war between army is only one of the outward manifestations. Sun Tzu in his ‘The Art of War’ and Chanakya in his ‘Arthshastra’ had said that war is the last instrument of politics for exerting the will on other country. So war starts with conflict of thoughts and beliefs. In that sense the recent national elections could be considered as war. War between two thoughts, beliefs, attitudes, public personalities in power, processes, etc. I reserve my personal judgments or comment on the performances of the past by governments, individuals, and political parties. This is to retain the objectivity of the subject of discussion. The recent elections were a kind of war; a conflict between two thoughts and ideologies. This was at its best in any political systems. As a veteran (retired armed forces person), management professor and a student of human behaviour, I was observing it from a different angle. It was different than what other experts, political analysts, ideologues, grass root observers, psephologists. They were using their tool, I was using mine. What I learnt in defense forces was ‘The Principles of War’. These are few principles that have hardly changed in spite of changes in situations, technology and scale. These were used in wars fought by ancient Indian and Chinese civilizations, World wars I and II, Vietnam and Korean wars, India-China and India-Pakistan wars, as well as modern wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. So during recent elections I compared leaders and parties of both sides how they are applying these principles for winning this political warfare. Let me state the principles one by one and point out the actions from the leaders from both sides. My findings are as follows. Selection and Maintenance of the Aim: A single, unambiguous aim is the keystone of successful military operations. Selection and maintenance of the aim is regarded as the ‘master principle of war’. It was quite obvious right from the beginning that BJP had a clear aim, to win the elections on its own strength without any inside or out side support. This was demonstrated by declaring their prime ministerial candidate, breaking all internal resistances, and standing firm behind the selected leader. ‘Abki Bar Modi Sarkar’ was a bold statement showing the friends and foes the resolve of BJP. They did not leave any doubt. In spite of few allies like JDU and BJD and few future probable allies were alienated, BJP maintained the aim. Thereafter, Shri Narendra Modi, (NaMo) showed how all efforts could be marshaled towards this single aim. Through out the campaign he remained focused on this aim and did not waiver in spite of the personal attacks on his marriage and modest childhood, past issues like ‘Godhara’, ‘encounters’ and ‘stalking’. NaMo set the tone and converted the campaign as BJP led by NaMo versus all others. For maintaining the aim, at times he had taken risks on certain issues, but he did not allow slipping the aim out of sight. Maintenance of Morale: Morale is a positive state of mind derived from inspired political and military leadership, a shared sense of purpose and values, well-being, perceptions of worth and group cohesion. This was visible in his every interaction with workers, media, and during public meetings. He kept the pack together and developed sense of purpose in the minds of common voters. He promptly supported his every leader when that leader was attacked; for example, Smriti Irani, Nitin Gadkari, and Yadurappa. This kept the morale of cadre high. NaMo’s unblemished personal record helped in maintaining morale of the cadre. Offensive Action: Offensive action is the practical way in which a commander seeks to gain advantage, sustain momentum and seize the initiative. At every stage from selection of NaMo as campaign leader for BJP, declaring his candidature for PM and then the nation wide campaign he was on offensive taking the battle in the territory of the opponent. You may know that Bajirao Peshwa the only commander in the history who won all his battles, always fought his battles in enemy territory. Offensive action requires less than one third efforts as compared to the defensive opposition. Few of his master strokes were fighting election from Varanasi, starting campaign from Bihar (not from BJP ruled states) and response to criticism by opposition. He rather than responding defensively created opportunity in the situation through aggressive campaigning in the states where BJP had insignificant or no presence. Security: Security is the provision and maintenance of an operating environment that affords the necessary freedom of action, when and where required, to achieve objectives. This was ensured by maintaining the BJP strengths intact in Gujrat, MP, Chattisgarh, Rajasthan and Delhi. In these areas, he kept the campaign in the hands of local leaders and allowed them freedom of action on the local issues. At other place he focused on national issues. He ensured that in these states the CMs were in control. Surprise: Surprise is the consequence of shock and confusion induced by the deliberate or incidental introduction of the unexpected. At this principle NaMo was at his best. He not only kept his opponent in shock and confusion but also kept media guessing on his next step which kept him in limelight. In fact BJP declaring NaMo as PM candidate itself was a great surprise for political observers. The major effect of creating surprise was evident by entire focus of opposition and media was shifted on him. As a result all channels gave substantial time for discussion about NaMo. This is a typical text book lesson for brand managers on how to get a good publicity without spending your money and efforts. As the things progressed NaMo was acting and opposition was reacting. As reactions grew he kept changing the topic which was again a surprise. He gave TV interviews only when voting phase had started and BJP declared manifesto on the first day of voting which many political analysts thought a fetal mistake. However, this gave a surprise to the opposition as they could not use it as an instrument for criticism. I feel this was similar to the Bajirao Peshwa and Napoleon who always surprised their opponents on timing and place of battle. Concentration of Force: Concentration of force involves the decisive, synchronized application of superior fighting power (conceptual, physical, and moral) to realize intended effects, when and where required. Unlike AAP, NaMo ensured that the available power is not fettered away. He marshaled the local forces at the time when he conducted rallies. The entire fire power was brought down together at that place. So after his every rally that people from that constituency or area felt that BJP candidate has already won. I witnessed this in his rally at Pune. He did not conduct any rally or meeting in Varanasi. But the two impromptu road shows he conducted were with full concentration force. On the other hand opposition was too thin and unsynchronized. Economy of Effort: Economy of effort is the judicious exploitation of manpower, materiel and time in relation to the achievement of objectives. Throughout his campaign NaMo used efforts only in focal area. He did not engage in petty battles in spite of direct personal attack. Neither had he allowed other leaders to engage in trivial issues. In fact he promptly corrected other BJP leaders who were deviated the engagement. Whenever irrelevant questions were posed to him, he answered them only once or declined to counter without giving any feeling that he has no answer or he is reluctant to speak. He kept focus on inclusive development issues. Flexibility: Flexibility – the ability to change readily to meet new circumstances – comprises agility, responsiveness, resilience, acuity and adaptability. This was evident in response to various issues raised by others. Good example was the way he turned comment like ‘Chaiwala’ in to opportunity as ‘Chai pe Charcha’. On the other hand he just did not respond to the criticism on his marital state and allowed others form their opinion. His flexibility with firmness on core principals was evident in his TV interviews. Cooperation: Cooperation entails the incorporation of teamwork and a sharing of dangers, burdens, risks and opportunities in every aspect of warfare. NaMo through his example instilled an attitude of cooperation among not only his BJP cadre and leaders, but also that of partners of NDA. The way he had managed his campaign through rallies, internet, social media, conventional campaign, electronic and print media with precise timing and scheduling of various activities, was possible because of cooperation of the entire team. Sustainability: To sustain a force is to generate the means by which its fighting power and freedom of action are maintained. This was evident from the longest political campaign in India. Possibly it could be compared to US presidential campaign. Opposition started late and still could not sustain it. Towards the end congress campaign lost its steam and had to call Priyanka Gandhi. However, by then the ground was lost. This sustainability for such a long drawn NaMo campaign was feasible only due to strong conviction, physical and mental stamina and judiciously deploying the recourses by his team. In this article I have just given my thoughts as a veteran based on my observations and what I learnt as basics of warfare. For some readers the word ‘War’ for the peaceful political process may sound offensive. However, both congress and BJP had active ‘War Rooms’ during campaign. I am not aware whether the word ‘War Room’ was used for its glamour / fashion or they really understood the principles. Whatever the case may be, NaMo campaign definitely had a flavour of ‘Principles of War’ passed down over 4000 years. It may be by design or default. But whatever happened had a learning value for future politics. These principles are also worth emulating by corporate sector in the intense competitive environment. Group Captain (Retd) D.P. Apte
Posted on: Sat, 09 Aug 2014 03:53:45 +0000
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