The BJP slowly but surely has made its mansion across the country brick by brick, credit should be given to stalwarts of the party like LK Advani, AB Vajpayee, MM Joshi and others for lifting the status as well as the morale of the party workers. The saffron party gradually got rid of its political nemesis first in the Hindi speaking states. Then the party started concentrating on blossoming lotus everywhere and make it a pan India party.
Advani lifts party
The BJP was founded in 1980. In the 1984 Lok Sabha polls, this party bagged just two seats. The man who is behind the up-gradation of the party’s position is none other than LK Advani. He shrewdly played the Hindutva card in the 1980s and brought like-minded people on one platform and made the party a potent force. Gradually, BJP made a stronghold in several states of India. The new leadership wants to go ahead and spread its wing all over India.
BJP makes a strong presence in WB
Meanwhile, BJP has strongly made its presence in West Bengal (WB). In 2014, it had bagged two Lok Sabha seats, which was the sign of a powerful arrival of the saffron party. The party changed the political arithmetic five years late in Mamata’s stronghold and captured 18 out of 42 seats in West Bengal in 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
TMC promotes violence
With the diminishing of the left Front and the Congress’s near-annihilation has ensured that those who are not happy with the autocracy of Mamata are likely to jump on the BJP’s ship. Although BJP is not a very any well-oiled organisation in the state, its strength is powerful enough to bash Mamata’s strong mansion. People’s support is tilting towards BJP in the state owing to the belligerent promotion of violence by the state government and its inability to control the increased activities of goons in the state.
RSS works from the grassroots level
The BJP didn’t enter West Bengal suddenly. RSS activists of the state started a campaign that RSS founder K.B. Hedgewar, studied medicine in Calcutta. The name of Syama Prasad Mookerjee was also highlighted as he was also born in Calcutta and this inspired struggling politicians to join the BJP and revamp their political career. The left party has lost its significance and most of them have come in favour of the saffron party. Migrant traders from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar already have a soft corner for the BJP. Therefore, TMC and BJP are the only two prominent contenders for future elections.
Positive sign
The curiosity of the BJP to spread its flag in south India is a positive sign for the party. Karnataka is the only state in the southern part of India where the saffron party has been able to erect its citadel. Hence, it has been keeping its eyes on Tamil Nadu.
BJP eyes TN
The BJP is struggling to find the perfect political formula to challenge the AIADMK and the DMK, so it has been looking to include ‘celebrities’ to lift the party’s image and make it popular among the people of Tamil Nadu (TN) in the future. The saffron party has now decided to lure film stars from Kollywood to strengthen its base in the state.
Hiring celebrities to inspire fans
Of late, noted actor Radha Ravi and ‘Hi Machaans’ fame actress Namitha have been inducted in the party in the presence of its national working president J P Nadda. The party is looking to hire more and more celebrities into its kitty, which is a part of its agenda. The purpose behind this is that celebrities will inspire their huge fans and others to join the BJP. There is nothing wrong in roping in cine stars. “It has been done by the DMK, the AIADMK and several other parties,” said BJP state general secretary (headquarter) KS Narendran.
Gautami rejoins BJP
Well-known actress Gautami, once an active member of the BJP’s youth wing, rejoined the party and took part in the march to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also participated in this mission in Chennai.
Stars are an asset for party
The hiring of movie stars continues with the inclusion of television star Jayalakshmi in the party. Officially, these stars are not assigned any work but they are assets for the party and they are assigned the role of a ‘crowd-puller’ during the period of the party’s various campaigns and programmes. State secretary Karu Nagarajan has said, “We invite film stars who are interested in working with us. They will play a crucial role in the campaigns”.
The BJP is likely to make a group of celebrities who can mingle with the common people and effectively popularise the party. They are invited to attend the party’s workshops get training from the experts to propagate the party’s agenda and schemes among the people. The saffron outfit has been trying to make a strong cadre in Tamil Nadu at the grassroots level, which is an ambitious plan for the long run of the progress of the BJP.
