Will the 'lotus' bloom in Kerala this election? That is the question most Bharatiya Janata Party leaders ask. Kerala is among the few states in India where the BJP has not won a single seat, either in the Lok Sabha or even in the state assembly.

Political analysts believe the BJP has failed to win a seat in Kerala because over 40 percent of the state's population comprises Christians and Muslims, but this ignores the fact that the BJP has won in Muslim-majority Jammu and Kashmir, in Sikh-majority Punjab, and in Christian-majority Mizoram, Meghalaya, and Nagaland.

State BJP leaders, who are busy preparing for Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani's Bharat Uday Yatra, claim the party will open its account in Kerala in the coming general election. They say the fact that Advani's first phase of the election rath yatra, which will start from Kanyakumari on Wednesday and move into Kerala, shows that the BJP leadership has Kerala on its radar.

In an exclusive interview with Deputy Managing Editor George Iype, Kerala BJP president P S Sreedharan Pillai explains how Advani's rath yatra will help change the political mindset in Kerala.

Kerala is the only southern Indian state where the BJP continues to lose in all the elections. Why?

It is true the BJP has yet to open its electoral account in Kerala. Perhaps we have been unable to win a seat because of the peculiar socio-religious characteristics in Kerala. But the party has been growing steadily in the state. The BJP has a large following in Kerala and not among Hindus alone.

Does the BJP have Muslim and Christian members in Kerala?

Many Christian and Muslim people are BJP activists in Kerala. Recently, four Christian clergy members joined the party. It shows that the BJP is a true secular party. It is the Congress and Marxists who practice communalism in the state.

Even though the BJP has not won elections in Kerala, is it a major political force in the state?

If you look at the electoral history of Kerala these last few years, you will realise BJP votes have determined the winners and losers in the state. In the 1999 Lok Sabha election, the BJP vote share was 8.05 percent. In all the elections, BJP candidates have determined the chances of the Congress or Marxist candidates.

Isn't winning a seat in Kerala a prestigious issue for the BJP?

It is indeed a prestigious issue. We are certain we will open our electoral account in the state in this Lok Sabha election.

Which Lok Sabha seats do you hope to win this time?

We expect to win the Trivandrum Lok Sabha constituency. We are going to field candidates in all 20 constituencies in Kerala. We have fielded our veteran party leader O Rajagopal from Trivandrum. In the last Lok Sabha election, Rajagopalji had polled the second largest number of votes after the Congress candidate. This time, we are certain that we will win the Trivandrum constituency.

Do you think Advani decided to embark on the rath yatra from the south to make an impact in Kerala?

That is one of the reasons why the BJP leadership decided to launch the rath yatra from Kanyakumari. It is a great honour for the BJP in Kerala that Advaniji is starting his election yatra from Kanyakumari [which is extremely close to Kerala].

How are you preparing for the Advani yatra?

State BJP leaders have prepared a number of campaign meetings for Advaniji to address.

Do you think the yatra will create any political impact in the BJP's favour in Kerala?

We will ensure that the yatra makes a solid impact on the people of Kerala about the BJP.

We are sure that Advaniji's journey will enthuse the people of Kerala so that there will be a radical shift in their political mindset. An increasing number of people in Kerala are beginning to love the BJP because of the sterling performance of the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government in the past five years. The people here are fed up with the petty politics that Congress and Marxist leaders play.

What will be the thrust of your poll campaign in Kerala?

India is shining and going forward to become a superpower under the BJP. But the only state in the country that is not shining is Kerala. It continues to be in the dark. The state has been going backward all these years in development under the disastrous governance by the Congress and the Marxists.

Image: Uday Kuckian