Swapan Dasgupta on Modernity (Vs Hindutva)

Swapan Dasgupta says the BJP must dump Hindutva and embrace modernity instead. He seems to be obsessed with modernity. Check out for yourself:

In short, the BJP must embrace modernity, be in a position to re-forge meaningful alliances and relegate identity politics to the backburner. (August 2009)

If India is changing and the RSS has already said that it is open to change, in that case the BJP has the duty to uphold modernity keeping in mind some of the basic fundamentals. (August 2009)

Former prime minister and BJP patriarch Atal Bihari Vajpayee represented modernity in a traditional idiom. (Ditto)

It reveals an unfortunate streak of adventurism that deflects attention from the more urgent business at hand: forging an enlightened nationalist agenda centred on security, growth, modernity and good governance. (June 2009)

Enlightened nationalism, good governance and modernity must become the party's (the BJP's) priorities. (June 2009)

Enlightened nationalism and modernity should become the two defining attributes of the BJP. (May 2009)

Yet, it is undeniable that the crucial swing votes which enabled the Congress to win more than 200 seats on its own came from two sections that are in the frontline of change and modernity: the middle classes and the youth. (May 2009)

The BJP leadership is seen as completely unresponsive to youth aspirations and modernity. (May 2009)

Narendra Modi became a passionate advocate of modernity and efficient governance. (April 2009)

The issue that is foremost in the mind of the RSS - which Bhagwat alluded to in his first public address after assuming charge - is the challenge of "modernity". (March 2009)

India has wholeheartedly embraced modern technology; it is wary of the cultural baggage that comes with modernity. (February 2009)

Tragically, this impatience with extremism has been misread by the Facebook brigade as thumbs-up for elevating the pub and pub-going women into symbols of Indian modernity. (Ditto)

It is a fitting rebuff to the mindset that deems Omar Abdullah's eloquent insensitivity in the Lok Sabha an iconic assertion of cosmopolitan modernity. (August 2008)

His (Narendra Modi's) opponents on the ground naturally include all those who are either disconcerted by or feel left out by this rush towards entrepreneurial modernity. (December 2007)

This disconcerting facet of modernity* appears to have escaped the Bharatiya Janata Party president, L K Advani. (June 2005)
*an electorate that lives for the present and dreams of the future

Today, the BJP is confronted with a stark choice: transforming defeat into defeatism or settling for ideological honesty and a touch of modernity. (August 2004)

Yes, 2004. Dr Dasgupta has been giving this advice for the last 5 years.