In BJP's 'Mission Bengal', Different Strategies To Be Anchored By Top Leaders

After the huge win in the Bihar election, the BJP has started working on a strategy to break through the defensive lines of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress.

As a first step, the BJP will deploy only its most powerful leaders in the Bengal campaign.

During his congratulatory speech following the National Democratic Alliance's (NDA) sweep of Bihar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said the Ganga river flows to Bengal via Bihar, and just like the river, the BJP's victory will spread from Bihar to Bengal.

A win in Bengal will be a massive morale booster for the BJP. Home Minister Amit Shah, as BJP president, had said the BJP's rise will come when it elects its own chief minister in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.

The Bengal elections are likely to be held in March or April 2026. The party has decided to contest the election without a single face. It will only rely on collective leadership and the work done by PM Modi.

The BJP is focusing on strengthening its organisation, sources said. Of the 91,000 booths in Bengal, the BJP has already formed booth committees in approximately 70,000 booths. The Election Commission, meanwhile, is waiting for the special intensive revision (SIR) exercise to be completed.

It is widely expected that like in Bihar, the SIR will also clean-up Bengal's voters list by removing a large number of  voters who have died.

A BJP leader said the Left parties used to win elections in Bengal through scientific rigging, including the names of dead voters in the list, and having their workers vote on their behalf.

However, this is expected to decrease significantly after the SIR. The BJP will then step up its booth-level campaign. The party has assigned election management responsibilities to Union Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav, former Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb, and IT cell head Amit Malviya.

National General Secretary Sunil Bansal has been working to strengthen the party organisation in Bengal for the last three years. A major step towards this includes resolving differences among state BJP leaders and maintaining discipline within the state unit.

State leaders have been asked to refrain from unnecessary rhetoric, and not to fall into the trap of the Trinamool, which will try to create its own narrative to engage the people of Bengal.

In the latest move, the BJP is planning to send a message of unity using a campaign that will be led by only senior leaders.

Schemes For Women

According to a senior BJP leader, the biggest issue in this assembly election will be women's safety. Despite having a woman chief minister, the daily atrocities against women, the RG tax scandal, the gang rape of a medical student in Durgapur, and the deteriorating law and order situation will be highlighted as major issues.

According to BJP leaders, the public is so fed up with the law and order situation in the state that they feel the Trinamool government must go. They said they will ask the public to vote for the BJP if they wanted change and development.

Employment will also be a major issue due to lack of industries; migration, and a generally poor economy are the two other major issues. Questions are being raised about the Lakshmi Bhandar scheme offered to women by the Trinamool government. Similar examples of greater financial support provided to women in BJP-ruled states will be cited, sources said.

The NDA's decision to provide Rs 10,000 to 1.5 crore women in Bihar for women's employment will be highlighted, they said.

To boost its attack, the BJP will reach straight for dynasty politics and corruption. Its  another strategy is to corner the Trinamool on alleged Muslim appeasement. According to BJP leaders, there are 120 assembly seats in the state that the BJP has won at some point in time. The party is working to focus its full strength on these seats and the remaining 40-50 seats to achieve the target of 160 seats.