Tragic

The death of Pramod Mahajan is a blow for the BJP. Ever since it lost the last elections in 2004 there has only been bad news for the party. Mahajan's death is like a bolt from the blue, for the BJP, which was looking for a turn around in it's fortune, lately

Can't think of any one person now in BJP who can replace Mahajan.

Born to a poor family in remote village of Maharashtra, Mahajan's meteoric rise in Indian politics had very few parallels. He was according to me one of the best minister's we ever had. The strides that were taken during his tenure in telecom and IT are still spoken of in India Inc.

He was almost like the glue that was holding all the strings of the party from falling apart. His backroom manouvers and his ability to keep his ego aside and help resolve issues were legendary. BJP is a party full of ego riders. Mahajan was a little different in that sense and was a true and loyal worker.

This is more or less the beginning of the end for BJP now, even though it is ruling majority of the states in north and central india.

Though one might argue that party is always bigger than a person, Mahajan was certainly larger than life as far as BJP is concerned.

To keep the balance of Indian politics right, BJP will need to be strong. And someone from BJP will have to step into his shoes soon. Sooner or later.