New Delhi: Enthused by its recent spate of victories in the assembly polls, and probably haunted by losing Madhya Pradesh to the Congress by a slim margin in 2018, the BJP has already started the groundwork to clinch the state in the 2023 state polls.
The BJP’s election machinery has set out an ambitious target — to increase the party’s vote-share in Madhya Pradesh from 41 per cent to 51 per cent in 2023. To achieve this, it has asked its 65,000 booth-level chiefs to get to work making micro-plans, leveraging technology, and reaching out to the Dalit and tribal communities.
The BJP’s main rival in Madhya Pradesh, and in many other states readying for assembly polls later this year and in the next, such as Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, is the Congress, which is already in disarray across India.
The workers have been tasked with adding 10 per cent vote-share in every constituency by mapping voters into three broad categories — beneficiary voters, influential voters and unhappy voters.
The state unit has also asked the booth-level cadre to regularly send suggestions and air grievances at the ground level via the organisational tech app it has created, called Sangathan, for better feedback and team-building. The app will also create a database of BJP workers and trace their activities.
“Instead of making plans at the top level, this time all mandal and booth leaders have been told to make their own micro-plan to expand the party’s reach across the state, and add 10 per cent vote-share. The state unit and party experts are also there to help when required. The target is to clinch 51 per cent vote-share,” P. Muralidhar Rao, BJP’s in-charge for MP, told ThePrint.
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Neck-to-neck with Congress
The BJP has not forgotten how it lost MP to the Congress in the previous election in 2018.
The party had won 109 seats, short of the majority mark of 115, while the Congress got 114 seats in the 230-member assembly. The Congress and BJP’s vote-share was neck-to-neck, around 41 per cent each, yet the former bagged five seats more than the BJP.
Following the results, Congress’ Kamal Nath served as chief minister for more than a year, till he was unseated by the Jyotiraditya Scindia faction’s rebellion in 2020. BJP’s Shivraj Singh Chouhan took over the chair in March that year, in what is his fourth stint as CM.
While MP has 21.5 per cent tribal voters and 15.6 per cent Dalit voters, a large section of these groups did not vote for the BJP enthusiastically in 2018. The state has 47 reserved ST seats and 35 general seats where the tribal population is at least 50,000. It also has 35 reserved Dalit seats.
Between 2013 and 2018, the BJP lost many seats in the Dalit and tribal belts: Among the 47 tribal seats, the party’s tally reduced to 16 in 2018 from 31 in the 2013 state election. The Congress bagged 31 of these seats in 2018.
Similarly, among 35 reserved Dalit seats, the BJP lost 11 seats from 2013 to 2018, winning on just 17 seats compared to 28 in 2013.
In 2003, when the BJP got back to power in MP after a 10-year hiatus during which Congress’ Digvijaya Singh was the chief minister, the BJP had won 37 of the 47 tribal seats. The party further improved this tally to 41 in 2008. Last year, CM Chouhan also wrested from the Congress the tribal-dominated Jobat constituency in a bypoll after hectic campaigning and major announcements for the community.
Technology driven micro-plan
Taking lessons from the defeat of 2018, the BJP has rolled out an election plan well in advance that revolves around the booth pramukhs and the Sangathan app.
All 65,000 booth chiefs, as well as karyakartas and mandal workers have been asked to upload their phone numbers and photos on the app, along with details of the IT cell heads and their political activities, so that everything can be tracked in real time.
“The Madhya Pradesh unit is a seasoned unit, yet through this app we can track their political activities in different parts of the state, in districts and even booths. It’s not just a database of party workers but will streamline the system of connecting and organising activities at the ground level in a short span of time,” said Muralidhar Rao.
Efforts are also being made to galvanise the grassroots-level cadre. State BJP general secretary Bhagwan Das said: “We have asked booth pramukhs to hold at least six functions like Deendayal Upadhyaya Jayanti, Ambedkar Jayanti, Vajpayee’s birthday and S.P. Mookerjee’s death anniversary at the local level to connect with more voters, since every programme establishes a link.”
Explaining the division of voters, another BJP leader said: “At most booths, there are four types of voters — one who is happy with state and central government’s work due to Hindutva ideology or other reasons, the second who is a beneficiary of government schemes, a third set that comprises influential voters such as teachers, professors, and religious heads, and a fourth section that comprises unhappy voters. We have asked every ground unit to map out these groups for better election preparedness.”
“Beneficiary and influential voters are instrumental in election results as they create an environment (hawa) in favour or against the government. So, we have to focus on them in advance,” he added.
To reach out to the crucial Dalit vote-base, the party has appointed a Dalit basti in-charge who will be responsible for 100 voters.
“This person’s job is to facilitate the implementation of beneficiary schemes and reach out to targeted Dalit groups. If there is any problem, we are also starting a programme in which a government officer will visit Dalit bastis for on-the-spot approvals of schemes or to sort out difficulties,” said Kailash Jatav, the BJP’s state SC morcha chief.
Along with this, he added, the party last week reached out to caste leaders such as Rahul Jatav, who is associated with a Dalit action group, Indore-based Mukesh Karon, and Malviya Samajik Sangh’s Naresh Rajak to join hands with the BJP. “I had a word with them all to know their concerns and problems of the community which we can sort out,” Jatav said.
Efforts to draw the Dalits and tribals have been going on for some time in the state BJP unit. Last year, CM Chouhan declared Birsa Munda Jayanti as Janjatiya Gaurav Divas, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced setting of six tribal museums, including one in Madhya Pradesh. Chouhan also renamed Habibganj railway station after 18th century Gond queen Rani Kamlapati to please the tribal community and announced measures such as conferring rights of forest management on the community and allocating patta land for home construction.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
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