BJP seems to be on the rise in Mamata Banerjee’s state. The recent analysis by C-Voter tracker has shown BJP making inroads in West Bengal with 31.5% of vote share, as of now.
C-Voter tracker shows BJP voteshare in West Bengal at 31.5% My reading: @MukulR_Official has changed the dynamics making BJP more aggressive; cadre shift (Left and TMC to BJP) happening; much could change between now and #2019LSPoll @YRDeshmukh @republic https://t.co/n4ecwvsSdO
— Kanchan Gupta (Hindu Bengali Refugee)🇮🇳 (@KanchanGupta) November 2, 2018
The survey projections augur well with Amit Shah’s target of winning 22 seats from West Bengal in 2019 General Elections. It is also the testament of the hard work the BJP has put in the state to increase its base.
On his second visit to the state in August, BJP President Amit Shah while addressing the rally at Kolkata made his intentions clear that he wanted the party to win at least 22 Lok Sabha seats from the listed 42. He urged people to vote for Narendra Modi so that BJP could bring development in the state. He implored the people to support BJP, stating “You voted for the Congress, the Left and the TMC; give us a chance and we will do what they could not.”
With 2019 approaching and Lok Sabha elections around the corner, the concluded Panchayat elections has surely set the tone in the state with BJP’s mammoth rise emerging as strong opposition.
Getting into statistics, if we look at the 2014 West Bengal Lok Sabha results, BJP secured 16.80% of vote share) and now the recent analysis by C-Voter clearly shows a double hike in the vote share.
Various reasons can be traced for BJP’s meteoric rise in the state.
BJP has planned to organize three rath yatra in the state, “The first Rath yatra will commence from the temple town of Tarapith in Birbhum district on December 3. Party president Amit Shah is likely to take part in it” said BJP Bengal President Dilip Ghosh. Making entry into alien territory might seem to be imprudent thought for some but actually it’s a masterstroke by the party high-command to unite and solidify its voter base.
Furthermore, people in the state were unhappy with Mamata’s anti people policies and are looking for an alternative that BJP could provide. Didi’s pro-illegal Bangladeshi immigrants stance has gone on to show how she is more concerned about her vote bank than the well being of the state of West Bengal and its people. Her anti-Hindu stance is evident to all as in 2016, the West Bengal government issued orders to curb traditional festivities associated with the immersion of Durga idols, because Muslims would celebrate Muharram the next day. In 2017, Tehatta High School in Uluberia stormed into public limelight when its Hindu students protested against the denied the permission to celebrate Saraswati Pooja.
Just a month ago, two students were shot dead in North Dinajpur district of West Bengal. The incident took place at Daribhit High School near Islampur. Students here from a very long period of time were demanding appointments of main subject teachers (Science, Maths and Literature in Bengali medium) but the state government ended up sending 3 Urdu teachers instead.
Mamata’s Muslim appeasement doesn’t seems to work even as Imams have demanded a ‘pay raise’. Mamata Banerjee had courted a controversy in 2011 when she announced that the government will give stipends to Imams. They demanded that their stipend be increased from Rs. 2,500 – Rs. 10,000. Added to this, they’ve demand that the state government should give aid to at least 10,000 Madrasas across the state. Presently, such aid is being given to 200 Madrasas by the Mamata led government.
Then the inclusion of Mukul Roy in BJP has already left Trinamool Congress in distress which has made BJP more aggressive and now there is a shift in the cadre from Left and TMC towards BJP.
Bhartiya Janta Party now capitalizing on these developments have started door to door campaign to woo Muslim voters as Ali Hossain, the president of BJP’s minority cell said, “Muslims in Bengal must realise that only the BJP can assure them development.”
He further added, “We will acquaint them with the inclusive nature of the policies of the central government.”
It is clearly evident that Mamata is on the back foot in West Bengal and BJP has consistently captured ground in the state. The latest C Voter survey is reflection of that very fact.