The Indian Prime Minister has made three trips to West Bengal in the last two months. The Trinamool Congress compares PM Modi to a migrating bird, showing up frequently during election seasons. But Why has PM Modi visited the state so much in such a short time? The rationale behind his frequent trips to West Bengal needs to be decoded.
The West Bengal Assembly elections are quickly approaching. They will end between April and May of 2026. PM Modi and his chief lieutenant, Amit Shah, have quietly altered the West Bengal structure this time. The BJP's new strategy of action for West Bengal has changed. Let's dissect the ten major ideas of the new West Bengal strategy plans.
1. Taking On Mamata
There isn't a single, unified opposition figure in the BJP that will challenge Mamata Banerjee, the primary "Masiha", in this election. The TMC has declared that in this election, Abhishek Banarjee's face will be less visible than Mamata Banarjee's, who is expected to be shown frequently on posters and banners. In an attempt to offset Mamata's singularity, the BJP has chosen to endorse Modi as its face in Bengal. There are several BJP leaders, including Shamik Bhattcharyya, the new party president, who is an urban, middle-class, secular figure and not a mass leader. Additionally, despite coming from the TMC, Suvendu Adhikari is a district leader in Medinipur and, in contrast to others, he is a mass leader due to his industrious work and active involvement in party activities, maintaining positive relationships with the Union Home Minister Amit Shah and other BJP leaders, among other things. Alongside Sukanta Majumder, the former president and state minister of education in the Indian government, who is also from North Bengal, but he is in no way a substitute for Mamata Banerjee. Although Dilip Ghosh was present, he has now left the association due to numerous scandals.
2. Bengal's Guarantee
Since PM Modi has a strong national brand, the BJP is attempting to position him as Bengal's guarantee. The old catchphrase "Modi hain to mumkin hain" will serve as inspiration for creating a new Bengal - one that is developed, has law and order, and is free of 'infiltrators'. Abhishek claims that every booth they must walk will result in victory, unlike the BJP, which lacks the organisational power of the party. So, he is penetrating more into the districts for booths. He is also meeting with local workers in the district. Since the last election, the BJP has been aware that, despite Modi's numerous messages, they were unable to reach every village and its residents because of its lack of organisation and capacity. In every village, they were unable to deliver their message door to door. To close this gap, the BJP is using vlogs, podcasts, and local advertisements as part of its more aggressive social media campaign, even with RRS's district-by-district help. Thus, there would be greater coordination between the BJP and RSS this time.
In addition, CM Mamta Banarjee has consistently promoted well-known programs like "Lakshmir Bhandar" and "Amader Para, Amader Samadhan", and the BJP willl find it difficult to beat the TMC on this. Mamata Banerjee's method of functioning is very clever. Since the BJP does not hold power in West Bengal, the central government does not use PM Modi's image, and the BJP does not have any organisational strength in West Bengal. However, this time, they are attempting to increase their organisational strength by bringing in RSS employees from outside so they can work at the ground level and see how much the people are benefiting. The BJP will make every effort to determine whether the people are truly benefiting from the unresolved concerns.
3. BJP-RSS Equation
The last time, there were some differences in opinions made by the BJP and the RSS. The RSS Bengal 'pracharaks' are not even united, even though the party has an organisational secretary who represents the RSS. When Mohan Bhagwat was here previously, he chose to concentrate on the RSS workers rather than meeting the BJP officials. The RSS plan is to replace Mamata Banerjee's regime in Bengal. They will work for the BJP, but independently rather than in concert with them, which is a better approach. Therefore, RSS plays a pivotal role, and they will plan their door-to-door campaign, meetings with civil society members, intellectuals, and RSS 'sakha' meetings in various districts.
4. Hindutva's Appeal
'Jai Shree Ram' is not being emphasised by either the BJP or the RSS at this moment. Furthermore, Hindutva is increasingly relevant to BJP politics in Hindi-speaking regions like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, and even Rajasthan. "Jai Shree Ram" and Modi walked together in Bengal during the 2019 Lok Sabha election, and the BJP won 18 seats in the state. The slogans "Jai Bajrangbali" and "Jai Shree Ram" were carried further by Dilip Ghosh, who was the party president at the time.
5. Development Is Key
The Prime Minister said "Jai Maa Kali" and "Jai Maa Durga" at his most recent Durgapur rally rather than "Jai Shree Ram". However, he didn't even say that slogan at the most recent Dumdum rally. Neither "Jai maa kali" nor "Jai ma durga." Development was the main theme of the Dumdum rally, and he attempted to convey that only PM Modi, through the BJP government, could provide the Bengal people with the development they so much need. Thus, "BJP lao, Bengal Bachao" was the slogan.
6. Focus Is TMC Government
This time, Mamata Banerjee is not being personally attacked by Modi. Because of Abhishek Banerjee, Mamata was the primary focus of the last election. Following the ED raid on Abhishek's home during the 2021 election, BJP leaders have been accusing him of extortion, corruption, illegal coal mining, cow smuggling, sand smuggling, and other offences at every meeting. This time, at least as of yet, the PM has not criticised anyone, so the emphasis is on the corruption and poor governance of the West Bengal government, as well as the state's unemployment and lack of work opportunities. The Renaissance city has devolved into a decadent metropolis in the 19th century; thus, we have to revive it, and the BJP government can bring forth a new era. It's a new strategy.
7. Polarisation Politics
Suvendu Adhikari had previously campaigned on the Hindu-Muslim polarisation. The BJP is growing dependent on Congress Left, ISF, and Allies since they are aware that they cannot win over Muslim voters. If ISF can bring some votes in the last two elections, ISF could not, and this Congress Left Alliance also didn't work in favour of BJP; rather, they can harm BJP. Since the BJP's primary strategy is to garner Hindu votes and grab them from Mamata, polarisation politics will be present this time. They need Hindu votes, but not through Hindu-Muslim conflict, as Mamata cannot win with just Muslim votes. It might work in Uttar Pradesh, but not in West Bengal. This is the latest observation made by the BJP. Therefore, playing up the issue of infiltration may be a useful strategy to divide the Hindu-Muslim vote.
In West Bengal, this strategy was implemented during the Vajpayee-Advani period. In West Bengal, it is preferable to use the issue of infiltration instead of 'Ram'. In his speech, the prime minister stated that infiltration is an unlawful occupation and illegitimate migration, and that people should not be allowed to vote or reside in West Bengal. He did this without resorting to hyperpoliticisation. We should put an end to this misuse, he added. However, TMC claims that the Bangladeshi border is the longest shared border with West Bengal, and the BSF paramilitary force is in charge of preventing infiltrators from crossing the border. So, the TMC is not to blame for this. Additionally, the BJP asserts that the TMC's protection and the West Bengal police are significant factors and that the BSF shouldn't be held solely responsible. When it is possible, the Tripura government tracks down infiltrators, but the West Bengal government does not follow suit.
8. Voter List
However, the voter list revision process in Bihar is rather thorough. The TMC is making every effort to undermine the voter list revision by taking the matter to court. Conversely, the BJP is launching political campaigns claiming that the SIR revision is a legitimate and common practice, but the TMC is limiting it because of multiple deceased voters, which the party is using to continue their rigging machinery. While CPM was in control, the TMC made the same allegations. The BJP is now doing the same with The TMC on this matter. It remains to be seen what the Election Commission will decide.
9. The Scams In Bengal
There are multiple viewpoints within the political circle regarding whether or not election corruption is an ongoing issue. It has occasionally, but not usually, been a problem in our country. Rajiv Gandhi was Mr. Clean till 1984, but he changed his name to Bofors Gandhi in 1989, and the slogan, "Gali gali main shor hain, Rajiv Gandhi chor hain"m, began to catch on in every state. Thus, in 1989, corruption emerged as a significant problem. However, Mamata was unaffected by the BJP's efforts to campaign against Partha Chatterjee, the education fraud, and other Bengali scams in West Bengal. Mamata is in a really resilient position. However, the prime minister views corruption as a very important issue. In the last year and the year before that, on August 15, he delivered a speech on corruption. Despite TMC's portrayal of corruption as a "washing machine issue" - that is, selective corruption - the BJP is working to combat the problem more. However, the fight against corruption will continue, and the BJP will make every effort to put these issues in the spotlight.
10. Trial And Error
It is a trial-and-error approach, with a revolving scenario when Durga Puja approaches and the actual campaign beginning after Diwali. The BJP government is using a trial-and-error approach in the interim. Following the prime minister's first three rallies, surveys will be carried out and the results will be analysed. In order to draw the conclusions and organise the rest appropriately, surveys will be undertaken by several professional groups in addition to the party.
(The author is Consulting Editor, NDTV)
Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author
