AGARTALA: From being Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s poll manager to guiding the BJP in Tripura, Sunil V Deodhar has come a long way. The 53-year-old from Maharashtra is instrumental in expanding the BJP’s reach in rural and urban Tripura. The BJP hardly had any base till three years ago when Deodhar was sent to the Left stronghold. Today, the party has emerged as a formidable opposition in the state that votes on February 18.
For the Left, which has been in power since 1993, the upcoming polls will be its biggest challenge in decades, thanks to a resurgent BJP which has grown at the Congress’ expense. Deodhar frequently travels rural Tripura, which accounts for a large majority of the seats, to consolidate the BJP’s support base. He interacts with the cross sections of the society, tries to understand their problems and pearheads agitations.
“I made several rounds of all 60 Assembly constituencies in the past three years and formed booth committees. These committees primarily raise people’s issues though processions and rallies.
So, the people slowly started embracing the BJP. Initially, some youngsters joined us and that opened the floodgates. There are 30,000 youth leaders working with us now. The BJP’s poll victories in one state after the other helped popularise the party in Tripura,” Deodhar told The New Indian Express.
Well-versed in several languages, Deodhar started as a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) pracharak. His job primarily was to work for national and emotional integration of the youths of the region with the rest of the country. Ahead of the 2014 Parliamentary elections, the BJPappointed him as the campaign manager of Modi in Varanasi. As an RSS pracharak, he had spent eight years in Meghalaya. He is also behind the formation of several organisations which work for the betterment and empowerment of youth of the Northeast.
Deodhar said the people were fed up of the Left Front regime and wanted respite from it. “Every election, the Left had faced anti-incumbency. So, how can there be 95 per cent polling? This means rigging. They cannot do it this election, for technology is in place,” he asserted.
Deodhar said the people were fed up of the Left Front regime and wanted respite from it. “Every election, the Left had faced anti-incumbency. So, how can there be 95 per cent polling? This means rigging. They cannot do it this election, for technology is in place,” he asserted.