When the Going Gets Tough, Be Cool Like MS Dhoni: PM Modi’s Haryana Lesson

Dhoni may have the luxury of being called --- and rightfully so --- Captain Cool, long after his career is over, but PM Modi doesn’t have that luxury. (PTI)

In its electoral low points, post June 4, the Modi government kept its ego aside and adjusted with JDU and TDP. Now that it is on a high, and rebel Savitri Jindal has offered to support the BJP, it hasn’t refused

The year was 2009. India was hosting Sri Lanka for a test series. Quick Indian wickets and the Sri Lankan side scoring it in no time meant the Indian batting line-up had to return. It was then that MS Dhoni delivered a simple mantra — don’t worry, this is not the end of the world. And what was the outcome? Eight wickets separated Sri Lanka from a win but Dhoni’s cool-headedness saved the day and it was a draw. Later, in the press conference, Captain Cool said: “There was no question of panic.”

For a country whose religion is cricket, one does not need to articulate that much of Team India’s turnaround success secret lies in the calm of Dhoni’s face that mirrors his mind’s quietness. But why the discussion of Dhoni and his ability to stay cool? Because to not panic when your tally drops to 240 while you proclaim a target of ‘400 paar’ requires the same tranquil mind with zero ego. It is here that the lines between Dhoni and Prime Minister Narendra Modi get blurred.

The Haryana clincher of 2024 was unexpected for many in the public, the media and even a section of BJP leadership. But as party leader Satish Poonia puts it, the leadership was confident its micromanagement would pay off in Haryana. Many factors worked for the BJP — the RSS-BJP relation was back on track unlike in Lok Sabha, non-Jat consolidation was maintained, and even Jat territories breached with the help of newer Jat faces and Independents, chief minister Nayab Saini taking the lead, and washing off Manohar Lal Khattar’s legacy among other factors.

But it was not an easy job for a party that for the first time was dependent on its allies at the Centre while its tally had halved in Haryana. On the morning of June 4, when the Lok Sabha election results were announced, the panic was palpable in the share market where it was a bloodbath. But what did PM Modi do right since then in Haryana that delivered them the state and can serve as a life lesson for everyone?

One, while staying cool is a pre-requisite, PM Modi and his team went back to old-school electioneering. Junking helicopter uses as much as possible, leaders Dharmendra Pradhan, Satish Poonia, and Biplab Deb silently entered Congress strongholds, and held small meetings of 30-50 individuals (often in someone’s house, as against street corners) while the Congress was content. After Haryana’s success, the BJP is thinking of employing such small door-to-door meetings in an eastern state as well.

Two, if you want to get a life lesson out of this, there is no secret sauce. Just as the BJP shunned over-dependence on its IT Cell (which was pioneered by the party itself), the BJP did not use election raths in Haryana. Nor were there any LCD displays where PM Modi or CM Saini came to make a statement. The BJP, at the eleventh hour, launched a video for Facebook and Instagram. But that is as final push. It wanted BJP leaders to go and spread party pamphlets the old school way.

Three, keep your egos in check, in your highs and your lows. In its electoral low points, post June 4, the Modi government kept its ego aside and adjusted with JDU and TDP. Now that it is on a high, and rebel Savitri Jindal has offered to support the BJP, it hasn’t refused. In both cases, a sense of pragmatic approach can be sensed.

Dhoni may have the luxury of being called — and rightfully so — Captain Cool, long after his career is over, Modi doesn’t have that luxury. One June 4 has to be corrected with an October 8.