Political parties in the state, in the run-up to the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, have launched a drive to recruit and train cyber warriors, who would utilise microblogging tools like Twitter and Facebook to tilt the sentiments of youth voters, considered to be neutral.
The Indian National Congress, the BJP and the Left parties are busy devising digital campaign strategies to tap the potential of the medium.
The Congress has set a target of 3,000 online volunteers from across the state and have already started recruiting from the party fold. KPCC president Ramesh Chennithala said that the party recognises the power social media has in influencing voters.
“Apart from Thiruvananthapuram, where we kickstarted our state-wide social media campaign, we have identified five districts to carry out training based on the module prepared by the Congress media cell headed by Ajay Maken. The training in Kochi will be held in mid-November followed by Kozhikode, Kottayam, Thrissur and Malappuram,” he said.
Chennithala said that the website of the KPCC, which is currently in English, would be made available in Malayalam.
The CPM and the CPI have asked their cadres, through its district committees, to be ‘active’ online and utilise the potential of social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. The CPM central committee member Thomas Isaac said that party would put in an organised effort, ahead of the polls, to garner support online.
“Already, cadres who are active on social networking platforms are extending their support to the CPM. It was the Left who supported the open and free software movement in the country and many youngsters who were part of it are from the state. They are the ones who are leading the anti- Narendra Modi campaign online. Our effort will be to consolidate these Left supporters in the social media space,” he said.
The BJP is planning to cash in on the NaMo effect on the social media, in the hope of opening the party’s electoral account in state.