All the BJP's present leaders from UP put together cannot win the state for the party.
So how about an out-of-the-box leader like Subramanian Swamy, asks Nazarwala, the man who called right the 2007 and 2012 UP elections.
The Narendra Modi deficit in Uttar Pradesh is complete, and the 2017 assembly elections may prove to be a nightmare for the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Rajnath Singh, Lalji Tandon, Kalraj Mishra, Ram Shankar Katheria, Murli Manohar Joshi, Kalyan Singh, Kesri Nath Tripathi, Laxmikant Bajpai, Vinay Katiyar, Yogi Adityanath, Keshav Prasad Maurya.... In today's political quagmire that is UP, none of them is popular or acceptable as the sole leader.
All of them put together cannot swing the state and win the BJP a thumping majority.
Puny dwarfs all, in contrast to the colossus that is Modi in the state.
Motor-mouths like Sakshi Maharaj and Yogi Adityanath are quite crude and clumsy, and periodically cause embarrassment to Modi's BJP.
They can safely be relied upon to dig the BJP's grave in UP -- with their tongues, no need for any spade.
And the icing on the cake is the BJP's infighting, their caste complexes, and lack of commitment to campaign for the party.
Most BJP-wallahs want the Modi magic to work while party workers refuse to slog it out in the rough terrain and interiors of UP.
Amit Shah, with all his skills, will be left fire-fighting UP's caste-ridden, cut-throat, egocentric politicians and their petty intrigues.
A piqued Prashant Kishore, or PK, may subtly add fuel to the embers from time to time.
Babri Masjid fame Kalyan Singh is keen to re-enter active UP politics, and has been dropping direct hints. Whether the Nagpur Brahmins of the RSS dare to take the risk is debatable.
Lucknow Mayor Dinesh Sharma has been nursing ambitions of being projected as the BJP's UP CM, a la Kiran Bedi in Delhi.
The Brahmin leader is reasonably popular in Lucknow. Yet, his diplomacy may not find favour in faction- and caste-ridden UP where the Brahmins are divided into Saryuparins versus Kanyakubjas.
Weaning them away from Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party may be a tough task for the Panditji.
Smriti Irani is hard working, gutsy and desirable as CM. But her caste confuses as does her position in the party hierarchy.
The quasi-Muslims, M A Naqvi and Shah Nawaz, are bright yet ill-equipped. The Nagpur bosses will not dare risk them in a crucial role in UP.
Varun Gandhi is a sober, articulate, promising youth and may emerge as a probable candidate.
If he is pitted against cousin Priyanka, the polls will become amusing, but only for the 3rd position.
It will also mean the Sonia-Maneka Gandhi war will continue to be fought by their proxies.
The only political veteran who can measure up to the challenging 2017 task in UP is Subramanian Swamy.
The Tamilian Brahmin is the most suited to handle the complex polls and can politically match Mulayam Singh Yadav, Mayawati, PK, and the rest, plus he has the acumen and resilience to strategise the BJP's electioneering.
Only this veteran may be acceptable in UP as his views are well respected among UP Brahmins as well. His seniority and stature are much higher than that of the other claimants to the UP CM's chair.
His many legal battles, and more important Rajya Sabha assignment may prevent him from accepting this poll challenge, for it will demand his full-time involvement.
Therefore, whether the genius will agree to take up this onerous responsibility is doubtful.
Modi's Amit Shah has proved unlucky in Delhi. And in Bihar, as well.
Relatively, Subramanian Swamy could prove to be a better and luckier bet than Amit Shah in UP.
Modi's desperate Dalit overtures and free e-rickshaws, boat distribution gimmickry notwithstanding, the 2017 UP polls are extremely tough for the BJP.
But the BJP's parasites hope to latch onto the Mayawati bandwagon and wangle a couple of ministerial berths in the coalition bargain.
A pathetic sight, and plight, indeed.
