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Opinion: The BJPs Political Naivety In West Bengal Cost Them The Elections

Ritwik Trivedi
BJP Demonstrate In Kolkata

Indian supporters and party workers of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) wear masks of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and flash victory signs as they celebrate on the vote results day for India's general election in Kolkata on May 23, 2019. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi looked on course on May 23 for a major victory in the world's biggest election, with early trends suggesting his Hindu nationalist party will win a bigger majority even than 2014. (Photo by Debajyoti Chakraborty/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

I believe that Mamata Banerjee’s victory in the West Bengal assembly elections was quite elating and extraordinary from her previous two stints in 2011 and 2016. Primarily for two reasons:

  1. The Left-Congress alliance failed to shape up on the ground as for the chaos and contradictions of its leadership, unlike the previous one checkmating the ascendancy of the BJP.
  2. For the burgeoning BJP, organising and commissioning leaders from across cow belt states where the BJP is both institutionally and ideologically developed, devised and decorated.
Representative Image.

Their polarisation may not have worked as the BJP had hoped for except for the party’s pocket boroughs in New Jalpaiguri, Darjeeling and Kalimpong, a region dominated by the saffron surge.

Rajbansis and Matuas, a considerable Schedule Community, did electorally commit with the BJP, but that was not significant given Mamata’s smart penchant for Hindu plus votes, including the women and minorities voting en bloc for the TMC in the last leg of the prolonged phased elections.

Also read: Opinion: TMCs Win In West Bengal Shows That Voters Have Discarded Non-Regional Parties

A BJP, with rented/borrowed and dented legislators of TMC, were looking to give Mamata a run for her money, but before they could attempt that, they shockingly fell to the ground, utterly dismayed and delusional. Who asked them to barb “O-didi, O-didi”, or for that matter a bermuda wear hinted towards a prolific and powerful woman chief minister of the state.

A politically naive statement of their action and display, taking this challenge away from them, as for their improved tally, makes them a principled opposition. Prashant Kishor had long predicted a BJP limping to reach a triple-digit mark, a reality being scripted on our screens.

The DMK, which too was Kishor’s client, immensely benefitted in Tamil Nadu, making a comeback to the political scene after a wait of 10 long years. In Bengal, schemes like Kanyashree and Roopshree did galvanise and mobilise women electorate to cast their faith in Didi.

Though Didi’s personal loss at Nandigram is alarming given her high decibel campaign, where she simultaneously recited verses from Chandi Paath and Kalma. What went wrong is everyone’s guess as Didi had won this seat by 1,200 votes before losing this one to her once upon a time trusted lieutenant Suvendu Adhikari by a margin of 1,736 votes.

Khela ho chuka shesh toh Bhaajpa ka patan rah.

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