Congress a 'cleaner' party now than the BJP: Rahul should be happy

A month before the next general

begins, Indian politics is witnessing people from across the board making a beeline to join the

. The

, on the other hand, is seeing people deserting it without giving a second thought. Parties like the RJD and JD(U) also have lost important members to the BJP. A noted journalist and a brother of a frontline Aam Aadmi Party leader have also joined the BJP. One can infer that the Congress looks a far 'cleaner' party now compared to the BJP, which is busy handling enthusiastic newcomers and disappointed old guards.

[Read: Dealing with old guards: BJP & Cong playing same game, but differently]

Crossing sides is a reality of India's electoral politics

But is this really a trend which shouldn't have occurred? To be honest, more than ethics or not, it is a reality of electoral politics in India. Here, elections are oriented to community/group advantages and the capacity of candidates to garner maximum votes becomes the main criterion immediately ahead of the polls. Ideological debate is absolutely irrelevant.

Rift-ridden BJP should be careful about the new joinees

But the BJP needs to be cautious while dealing with the new joinees. The saffron party is already facing problems with allocating seats to its old guards. Jaswant Singh, the senior leader who was denied ticket from Barmer, has already said that the BJP has been divided into the asli (real) and nakli (fake). It is indeed ironical that the party, which lost a number of allies over the last one decade owing to the Gujarat riots in 2002, began to win back friends because of the soaring popularity of Narendra Modi, the same man who was the chief minister of Gujarat when the riots broke out. Those who are crossing floors today after praising Modi are doing so as opportunists.

'Communal Modi' is just no reason, it has been proved

Earlier, they slammed Modi because they needed moral support. Now, they are praising Modi because they want to make use of the pro-BJP wave. For the BJP, this cross-over is welcome only to the extent that it helps its electorally. Or else, just a useless baggage won't help its cause. Ramkripal Yadav, for instance, can be a handy weapon for the BJP in Bihar. So is Satpal Maharaj in Uttarakhand. But a Bappi Lahiri? One doubts.

Rahul Gandhi won't be disappointed despite the resignations

As far as the Congress is concerned, Nandan Nilekani is perhaps the only known face to have joined it in these difficult times. But he is a candidate who is more focussed on local issues of Bangalore and not about the national. The party, just unlike the BJP, has struggled to find candidates to contest the national polls. Some of its seasoned leaders have decided to opt out, giving the opposition enough opportunity to ridicule. But this vacuum is certainly going to cement Rahul Gandhi's legacy, which is to reform the party's inner functioning and bring it closer to the people. With opportunists leaving, Rahul Gandhi would find a nice opportunity to execute his idea of a revival. The party has taken a positive step by denying poll ticket to tainted leader Suresh Kalmadi. Steps like this could go a long way in improving the party's poll prospects in the long run.

Given the fact that he is a silent worker, he will like to make use of the opportunity to bring things on track while all the focus remains firm on the sensation in the BJP.