With the West Bengal Assembly elections drawing near, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has intensified its preparations, unveiling plans to launch nine Parivartan Rath Yatras from different parts of the state. This is similar to BJP's election campaign of 2021.
The first phase of yatra will begin from Cooch Behar South, Krishnanagar South Garhbeta, and Raydighi Kulti on March 1.
The second phase will begin from Islampur, Sandeshkhali, Hassan, and Amta on March 2.
No yatra will be carried out on March 3 and 4 on the occasion of Holi. The campaign will resume on March 5.
Between March 5 and 10, the BJP will take a journey of over 5,000 km in each assembly constituency. Overall, there will be 60 big public meetings and more than 300 small public meetings.
"This is not Rath Yatra. It is Parivartan Yatra," said Bengal BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari. "It will take place in order to bring a change in Bengal. It has happened in other states as well, so we are organising this in Bengal also."
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will join the concluding rally at Kolkata's iconic Brigade parade ground.
BJP Chief Nitin Nabin, former party President and Union Minister JP Nadda, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Union Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Ministers Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Nitin Gatakari, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, and Smriti Irani are set to attend the inauguration of yatra.
West Bengal BJP President Samik Bhattacharya charged at Mamata Banerjee's leadership and called it synonymous to corruption. He said, "In 2011, there was a significant political change in West Bengal. Mamata Banerjee had one clear agenda: the restoration of democracy. However, in the end, what happened was that one hegemony was simply replaced by another. Trinamool Congress and corruption were seen as almost synonymous, as there is hardly any government office without allegations of corruption."
