PM Modi's Bengal Address Decoded: Energising Cadre, Countering Mamata Banerjee

For the upcoming election in West Bengal, Prime Minister Narendra Modi remains the strongest brand equity for the state BJP in countering Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her party, Trinamool Congress.

PM Modi is giving more priority and focus to the Bengal election, visiting the state repeatedly in recent months.

Saturday's rally was held in Taherpur, Nadia, where the presence of the Matua community is dominant. It is also a district bordering Bangladesh. Although it is a Matua-dominated area, it is not in North 24 Parganas, which is the main centre of Matua devotees, where Thakurnagar is located.

PM Modi could not reach the rally venue due to bad weather. He then returned to Kolkata, at Dumdum Airport, and delivered a virtual speech to the crowd from there.

A large number of people had gathered at the rally with the expectation of seeing PM Modi in person. As a result, many were disheartened when he could not attend physically.

PM Modi praised the social role of the Matua community. He began his speech with "Joy Nitai", which is the usual devotional utterance of the Vaishnavites. "Nitai" refers to Sri Chaitanya. He praised the role of the Matua Samaj and mentioned Harichand Thakur, Guruchand Thakur, and Baro Maa. He said Baro Maa truly showed what it means to be a mother.

However, PM Modi did not give any assurance to the Matua community regarding their anxieties about the deletion of their names from the voter list, as many Matua people do not have birth documents. The Supreme Court has said that one must first show a birth certificate to be a voter. The BJP has stated that through the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, they will get citizenship and eventually voter certification. But the Trinamool Congress said this process is very slow. With the West Bengal polls expected to be announced in February, Shantanu Thakur and the entire Matua community had expected PM Modi to give some concrete assurances.

PM Modi's manner of dealing with this matter is in line with constitutional and legal best practices. The Supreme Court has already made a ruling on the birth certificate matter.

The Trinamool Congress and other parties created hype that PM Modi was coming to restore the disturbed Matua vote bank. BJP sources said he prefers to act rather than react. If he intends to do something for the Matua voters, it will be through the administration and legal processes. There is still time for that.

The Trinamool, meanwhile, has aggressively begun campaigning, claiming that BJP has cheated the Matuas.

PM Modi instead focused on Mamata Banerjee's misgovernance. of the Bengal government. He said that if there is a "double-engine government", Bengal's development will accelerate. He emphasised that there is no shortage of funds, but corruption and "cut money" have blocked Bengal's progress.

PM Modi also spoke about Mission 2026. Through an audio message, he described Bengal as "Maha Jungle Raj". In Bihar, he had earlier referred to "Jungle Raj", but here he said it is "Maha Jungle Raj".

PM Modi's speech energised BJP workers. Speaking in Bangla, he said: "Banchte chai tai BJP chai (we want to live, so we want BJP)."

PM Modi is expected to return to Bengal very soon. Today's campaign launch was just "first gear", and he will speed up the party's campaign in the coming days. He also criticised the 34-year Left rule and praised the performance of the BJP government in Tripura. Thus, Bengal Mission is officially on.