Sushil Kumar Modi (1952-2024): A Politician and a Gentleman

SUSHIL KUMAR MODI possessed a lively and wry sense of humour that was never long absent, irrespective of the current turn in his fortunes. His irreverent wit permitted a more meaningful appraisal of events and people than is often the case with politicians who tend to be self-absorbed. His mild and un­hurried manner could be deceptive though. An unbroken stint in politics since his university days and the demanding assignments he handled is evidence of a sharp analytical mind capable of shrewd estimations. Just as he was percep­tive, he was dogged and courageous, taking on powerful op­ponents and unmasking corruption. When he succumbed to cancer on May 13 at age 72, not only did the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lose an exceptional leader but public life stood depleted by his untimely departure.

Despite his obvious talents, Modi had his share of struggles, some within the party he represented. He was at times accused of being “too close” to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and might be the only BJP leader to be subjected to a confidence test by the party national executive. He keenly felt the unfairness of the charge but submitted to a party inquisition during a meet­ing held in the Parliament House Annexe in Delhi. The truth is that he understood the need to sustain BJP’s alliance with Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) and believed acrimonious state­ments would only help the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Lalu Prasad, whose vice-like grip on Bihar had once seemed unshakeable. Aware the BJP-JD(U) alliance is a delicate balance of castes and interests that are not always aligned, Modi felt self-inflicted wounds are avoidable.

It was Modi, as leader of opposition in the Bihar Assembly from 1996 to 2004, who filed cases in the Patna High Court in what came to be called the “fodder scam” and led to an investi­gation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The court-ordered CBI probe resulted in a major crisis for the United Front (UF) government as the agency moved to arrest Lalu, then the powerful chief minister of Bihar. Then Prime Minister IK Gujral and senior Janata Dal leaders persuaded Lalu to step down and appoint his wife Rabri Devi as chief minister. Rabri Devi was chief minister from July 1997 till March 2005, but RJD lost ground and was finally supplanted by a National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government led by Nitish Kumar in 2005. It was a momentous event as Lalu’s Mandal politics that rested on a Muslim-Yadav (MY) vote bank was undermined by the desertion of a significant section of non-Yadav OBCs disillusioned with the leader.

The social engineering brought to fruition the decision of Nitish Kumar and George Fernandes to part ways with the Janata Dal in 1994 and ally with BJP in the 1996 Lok Sabha election. The formation of a government in Bihar gave BJP and its Hindutva politics a boost and though its articulation remained a source of tension, Modi’s presence as deputy chief minister ensured the coalition survived the bumps and jerks. Modi took governance seriously and was passionate about improving the lives of people in Bihar. He showed a taste for grappling with complex issues and headed the em­powered committee of state finance ministers on the Goods and Services Tax (GST) replacing West Bengal’s Asim Dasgupta. He displayed the capac­ity to work with other state ministers and helped resolve sticky conflicts over taxation and state-Centre relations. Later, after GST was implemented, he headed a group of ministers to solve information technology issues that threatened to derail the ambitious tax reform. He was at the centre of discus­sions to rationalise GST rates and the process of fitting services and goods into various slabs. It is in this context that Prime Minister Narendra Modi noted his active role in the implementation of GST.

Modi brought up incriminating evidence of a ‘jobs-for-land’ scam when Lalu Prasad had been railway minister in the UPA government, raising the heat for Nitish Kumar who had begun to fret under the overbearing ways of his new ally

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BJP’s long partnership with Nitish Kumar ended ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha polls with the JD(U) leader refusing to endorse Narendra Modi’s candidature for prime minister. The setbacks suffered by JD(U) and RJD in that election brought them together and BJP faced the mighty Mandal duo in the 2015 state poll and lost. Sushil Modi bore the brunt of the defeat though he could not be solely blamed for BJP’s miscalculation that the election could be won by reminding voters about the “jungle raj” that marked Lalu’s term in office. Modi, however, did not give up. He soon brought up incriminating evidence of a “jobs-for-land” scam when the RJD leader had been railway minister in the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. Modi had an ally in then Finance Minister Arun Jaitley with whom he enjoyed a good equation. Jaitley saw merit in the cases and soon Modi was hammering away at Lalu and his family members for their alleged complicity in the scam, raising the heat for Nitish Kumar who had begun to fret under the overbearing ways of his new ally. The railway jobs scam was the principal trigger for Kumar to dump RJD and renew his vows with BJP in July 2017. Modi was back as deputy chief minister and remained so till 2020 when the BJP-JD(U) alliance returned to office. However, in a surprise move, BJP did not renominate him to the job.

Modi was perplexed by the decision to replace him as chief minister and worried about the inability of the state party to maintain relations with Kumar and JD(U). In the event, Kumar did yet another flip-flop and allied with RJD a second time in August 2022. While Modi had his concerns about BJP-JD(U) relations, he knew this was not the main reason for Kumar’s opportunistic behaviour and severely condemned the chief minister. After moving to Rajya Sabha in 2020, Modi’s erudi­tion was often on display with BJP fielding him to speak on important matters of the economy. He could present BJP’s views on issues like Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in a cogent and effective manner. It is a testament to his dedication to the job on hand that Modi prepared in detail for speeches in Parliament or Assembly. In fact, he would politely turn down requests from the media for off-the-cuff responses. Asked about his views on the significant aspects of the BJP Na­tional Council held earlier this year in February, Modi said he would get back after some thought. He did so, and an­swered the question about the viability of the prime minister’s call for 370 Lok Sabha seats with counter-questions: Was there any strong reason to vote for the opposition? Was there any reason to vote out the Modi government? He concluded by asserting that it might be difficult to predict where the BJP tally will stop. It might well surpass conventional expectations. Ahead of Kumar’s latest U-turn, Modi anticipated his return to NDA, noting no door is closed permanently. Again, he under­stood the utility of a BJP-JD(U) alliance and the blow Kumar’s exit would be to the opposition’s I.N.D.I.A. project.

Sushil Modi was, above all, a fine human being with a genu­inely helpful and sincere nature. He saw merit in moderation without compromising on his fiercely held ideological beliefs. He never forgot friends and his associations across all sections of society went back to when he was a student leader and later a BJP functionary involved in organising yatras of party stalwarts like LK Advani and being part of political campaigns. His questioning gaze and the slight smile that often played across his face will be missed as much as his insights on politics and public life.

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Rajeev Deshpande

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