NDA workers are sounding more confident of victory just on the basis of the 2019 Lok Sabha election verdict in which it won 39 out of 40 seats. What they are not taking into account is the miserable performance of the BJP in the Assembly polls in Maharashtra, Haryana, Jharkhand and Delhi.
Soroor Ahmed | Clarion India
WITH local trains not running, no scope for ‘Chai Per Charcha’ anywhere in the state, leaders and workers of political parties invisible and campuses wearing a haunted look it is really difficult for a journalist to gauge the electoral mood of the voters in poll-bound Bihar. Till now they are doing stories either based in Delhi, Patna or some urban centres and relying on the past image of leaders or parties or the social combination of the respective alliances.
Perhaps never in the past the task has been so difficult when the election is just two months away – blame it on post-corona lockdown. If that was not enough came floods in the last part of north Bihar making the movement all the more difficult.
Take the case of the BJP, known for mobilisation of the rank and file. In 2015, when the Assembly election was last held, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had in July and August made official trips to at least four different towns to launch or inaugurate different schemes. That was before the announcement of the poll by the Election Commission on Sep 9, 2015. During the election campaign the Prime Minister had addressed around thirty meetings.
This time he is yet to address a single virtual function. The only significant event that took place was on June 7 when the Union Home Minister Amit Shah held a virtual rally. It was claimed by the party that 73,000 LED TVs were stalled all over the state for the party workers and supporters to listen to and watch. Then it was also disclosed by party insiders that the Prime Minister too may address one such meeting. But nothing happened.
No doubt, Amit Shah’s rally generated some movement and the state unit of BJP started holding election related meetings in its headquarters in Patna. All this started happening even before the lockdown was not totally lifted. Soon there was a big spurt in the cases of coronavirus. A large number of BJP leaders and workers as well as their family members fell ill. This included the state unit president, Sanjay Jaiswal, Member of Parliament Ram Kripal Yadav and several ministers and legislators. One of the MLCs even died. This caused a panic and the party workers once again shut themselves in their houses.
Amit Shah himself had to be hospitalised twice. The saffron party, in the meantime, started concentrating for August 5 foundation laying function of Ram Temple in Ayodhya.
However, the BJP once again started pooling its resources as the time was running out fast. On August 22-23 the party held its two day state executive meeting. It was organised through video-conference with just 65 leaders allowed to attend in the party headquarters where social distancing was claimed to be maintained. The party’s general secretary Bhupendra Yadav and former Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who is election in-charge of Bihar, took part in it. The National President of the BJP J.P. Nadda too addressed the party leaders and workers on the second day (August 23).
The scenario was no better in Janata Dal United. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar did not come out of his official residence for over 90-odd days after the lockdown – in fact he started maintaining distance even before March 24 announcement of the lockdown.
His party Janata Dal United, like the BJP, too started holding several organisational meetings. But soon news spread that a large number of people and officials working in the chief minister’s official bungalow tested positive. Party spokesman Dr Ajay Alok and MLC Ghulam Ghous were also among them who fell ill. Nitish made a few token trips but that was all.
Then came floods, an annual phenomenon in riverine north Bihar. This time COVID-19 came as an excuse for not making pre-monsoon flood preparations, for example, plugging of embankments.
Nitish and his deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi then went on in inauguration-spree, obviously with the help of video-conferencing. In the last couple of months three approach roads to newly built bridges were swept away, one of them 29 days after being thrown open while the other one just hours before it was to be inaugurated by the CM.
In contrast, the leader of opposition Tejashwi Prasad Yadav has been visiting the corona- and flood-affected villages and towns of Bihar. So is the leader of Jan Adhikar Party, Pappu Yadav. Even Chirag Paswan, the leader of the third constituent of the NDA, the Lok Janshakti Party, is more visible and vocal. He has joined the opposition rank in demanding that election be postponed keeping in mind the havoc caused by corona and floods in Bihar.
The irony is that while it is really difficult to make any guess work on the poll outcome the NDA workers are sounding more confident of victory just on the basis of the 2019 Lok Sabha election verdict in which it won 39 out of 40 seats. What they are not taking into account is the miserable performance of the BJP in the Assembly polls in Maharashtra, Haryana, Jharkhand and Delhi.
