GUWAHATI: Buoyed by its victories in Assam and Manipur, the BJP has set its sights on Congress-ruled Meghalaya and Left bastion Tripura, both going to polls in three months.
The saffron party, focussed on achieving a “Congress-mukt” the Northeast, is relatively new in both states although it has a greater chance of doing well in Tripura. The Left in Tripura has been in power since 1993 and hence, anti-incumbency is evident. The state has a large Hindu population.
For years, the Congress has been the Left’s principal rival but its popularity depleted significantly in the face of a resurgent BJP. The Congress was also weakened by the defection of six of its nine MLAs to the Trinamool Congress. All of them defected to the BJP a few months ago. Until then, the BJP did not have a single MLA in the state.
That the BJP is serious about Tripura was evident when it started sending its leaders to the state following its poll success in Assam. Over the past 18 months, a bevy of BJP leaders have visited the state and addressed rallies to try and warm up to voters. Among them was its national president Amit Shah, who had dined at the house of a tribal to keep the community in good humour.
Tribals make up around one/third of Tripura’s 36.74 lakh population and they decide the fate of candidates in 20 Assembly segments. They also hold sway in several other constituencies. The BJP is trying to penetrate the tribal areas by frequently organising rallies to highlight the alleged misrule of Manik Sarkar government. It has also launched an aggressive campaign in urban Tripura.
However, the general perception is that the BJP will not be able to oust the Left unless its unity can be breached. The Left is wary of the BJP’s surge and admits it has taken over the Congress’s space. “In terms of mobilisation, the BJP is next to us. The Congress is eroding,” CPI-M state secretary Bijan Dhar told The Sunday Standard.
In Meghalaya, the BJP has no base and is trying to grow. Aided by the RSS, the party is trying to spread its tentacles to Garo Hills where Hindus have a sizeable population. The party does not have a single MLA in the 60-member Meghalaya House.
It is almost certain that Congress MLAs will ditch the party. The BJP’s image took a beating after the Centre’s cattle slaughter rules a few months ago. The locals viewed them as a “ban on beef”, triggering an anti-BJP sentiment. However, despite being branded a “Hindu party” by its political opponents in the Christian-majority state, the BJP has been able to draw four MLAs—two independents and one each from the Congress and the NCP—to its side.
“We will go to people with the slogan that Meghalaya needs change and that the state should be ridden of corruption and the misrule of the Congress,” BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav said.