With its eyes set on West Bengal Assembly elections early next year, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has started work on its strategy to woo people. According to Kailash Vijayvargiya, the party's national general secretary and West Bengal in charge, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a rally on the occasion of Durga Puja. The Prime Minister will speak to the people of the eastern state virtually on October 22.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi will connect with the people of Bengal virtually on October 22. He will address the people on the auspicious occasion and will be with them in spirit to celebrate the puja,” Vijayvargiya said.
He informed that Union Home minister Amit Shah will also visit the state to enthuse the party workers ahead of the Durga Puja. He is likely to visit the northern districts where he will hold an organisational meeting review the preparedness for the polls.
“The Union Home minister will come to North Bengal for a party meeting. He is trying to come before Durga Puja. However, the dates have not been finalised yet,” he said.
Assembly elections in the state will be held in May 2021. The BJP wants to project it as an alternative to the Trinamool Congress which is ruling the state since 2011 under Mamata Banerjee’s leadership. The party has been organising a series of events wherein it is highlighting the failures of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee with a focus on political killings, minority appeasement, and poor handling of the Covid-19 situation. Last week, the party's youth wing, BJYM, organised a protest march in Kolkata against the political killings in the state. The saffron party had won 18 out of 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal during last year’s general elections and expects to repeat the performance in the upcoming Assembly elections.
Meanwhile, the Bengal government has issued strict Covid-19 guidelines for Durga Puja committees to follow during the festivity. CM Mamata Banerjee has urged the people to avoid crowding and accused the BJP of spreading communal tensions in the state. "On one hand, you have COVID-19, dengue and on the other, you have the BJP, the biggest pandemic. It is an evil force. In Bengal, if you are into politics, you have to abide by certain norms that are part of our rich cultural heritage. The BJP, however, is not bothered if people are dead or alive. They are only interested in wresting power. I want to tell them, it won't be easy," she said.
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