State BJP eyes Durga Puja to reconnect with Bengali psyche

Kolkata: It isn’t just Lord Rama or his disciple Lord Hanuman, Bengal BJP is desperate to increase its footprint in the coming Durga Puja to get rid of the “alien” stigma and open up a groove in the Bengali psyche. The move follows from the Bengal unit’s analysis of the assembly polls in which the party fell far short of the 200-seat target set by BJP leader Amit Shah.
There were arguments for and against in BJP’s meetings, but the fact remains that leaders of the Bengal unit, including Dilip Ghosh, were overshadowed by PM Narendra Modi, Union home minister Shah, defence minister Rajnath Singh, Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath in public and also within the organization in the run-up to the polls.
Although the central BJP’s presence was not too “overbearing” in north Bengal where the party fared well, the PM quoting Tagore or Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in “mispronounced Bengali” failed to appeal to the Bengali ‘bhadralok’ in south Bengal.
Ghosh didn’t like the way Subrato Chatterjee was removed from the post of secretary Bengal BJP (organization) ahead of elections on the suggestions of Kailash Vijayvargiya, Mukul Roy and the then RSS kshetra pracharak of Bengal Pradip Joshi. State office-bearers were in many cases in the dark over entrants from Trinamool or selection of candidates. The differences came to the surface when then junior Union minister Babul Supriyo and BJP state general secretary Sayantan Basu spoke up against the inclusion of former Asansol mayor Jitendra Tiwari in BJP. The party served them show-cause notices.
So when the BJP brass sent forms to be filled up by Bengal BJP over candidate selections, weeks after the poll results, the dismay was evident. A section of state leaders feels that some organizers who switched from TMC were repulsed by ranks at the grassroots. Such last-minute joining worked to the contrary, as was evident in Hooghly.
With the focus now on Uttar Pradesh, Bengal BJP is trying to carve out its course on its own in consultation with the BJP brass. At the Sahid Samman virtual meeting on July 21, Ghosh and leader of opposition Suvendu Adhikari were the main speakers. The purpose, say leaders, was to connect with the people of Bengal.
BJP president JP Nadda asked four junior Union ministers from Bengal to lead the Sahid Samman yatra. He also urged state leaders to reach out to the public and take the cases of post-poll victims to a “conclusive end”.
Accordingly, the Bengal BJP is planning an expansion of organizational districts, recruitment of party workers and also ways to reach out to the public on issues of life and livelihood.
BJP is, therefore, eyeing the Durga Puja in a big way. “This is not the first time we are going to organize the Durga Puja. Our leaders are also engaged with various para clubs. Let’s pray that Covid loses its sting before the pujas,” said Basu.