From simply seven states in 2014 to 17 states in 2022, the BJP footprint has grown past conventional strongholds to conquer new forts just like the Northeast. But the Wall of Vindhyas has been a tricky one to crack to date. In this particular collection on BJP’s Peninsular Pitch, News18 takes a have a look at the saffron get together’s renewed push for electoral success in southern India.
In Part 5 of the collection, we assess the BJP’s techniques to set up itself as a severe electoral contender in Kerala the place tangible success nonetheless eludes it due to distinctive demographic challenges.
It was a moist but breezy night at Kerala’s lovely Shankhumukham seashore in Thiruvananthapuram, the place the place Narendra Modi had arrived to kick-start his 2014 Lok Sabha election marketing campaign. Just as the gorgeous purple Kerala solar started to disappear into the Arabian Sea waves, Modi stood up amidst cheers and thunderous clapping to tackle the well-attended venue. He then introduced that within the subsequent few years, the Bharatiya Janata Party can be the “Third Front” — one that may defeat the state’s dominant political blocs UDF and LDF.
Eight years later, the BJP nonetheless finds itself a straggler in Kerala’s electoral race, even if the state has a majority (56 per cent) Hindu inhabitants. Amongst all of the southern states, Kerala is seen as one of the difficult ones for the nationwide get together, say senior BJP leaders to News18.
Two parliamentary and meeting elections later, the BJP in Kerala suffers due to three main main causes — lack of a robust mass chief, a weak voter base and possible assist with winnability due to demographic challenges with minorities and majority communities cut up between the UDF and LDF — clarify state leaders of the get together.
There is a necessity for a robust, mass chief, a face that folks can join with
The BJP believes that so as to be a robust contender in the course of the elections, the get together ought to at the least command 35 per cent of the vote share. Presently it swings between 16 and 20 per cent.
“There is a necessity for a robust, mass chief, a face that folks can join with, identical to in states akin to Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, and so on, the place we’re ruling,” said a party leader.
The BJP’s “double-engine sarkar” concept has also found interest among voters in the coastal state. The party is viewed as an alternative which has focused on better sanitation, drinking water, skill development, rural employment, and new and innovative forms of governance. The stand taken by the party during the Sabarimala issue too gave it a slight boost, leaders believe.
Senior Kerala BJP leaders accept the fact that though they have been gaining ground electorally in the local body units, they are unable to break the hold of the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) or the United Democratic Front (UDF).
Last year, while addressing the core committee of the BJP in the state, PM Modi stated that he wanted the party to win at least 71 seats in the 140-member assembly — seventy more than its present strength.
We have a strong cadre base, but our vote bank is weak. The challenges we face are quite unique in Kerala
According to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the LDF-ruled Kerala has close to 3 million cadres in the state and accounts for more than 5,000 RSS shakhas.
“We have a strong cadre base, but our vote bank is weak. The challenges we face are quite unique in Kerala. While the constituencies are split between majority and minority communities, a large part of the Hindu community votes in favour of the Left. We need to get at least one community — the Muslims or the Christians— on our side. That is when we can win seats,” explains CT Ravi, BJP’s nationwide normal secretary.
The BJP central management can be in quest of a robust mass chief for the Kerala BJP. According to former BJP state president CK Padmanabhan, the get together wants a “winnability combination”.
“Day by day we are growing stronger. The task is cut out for the party. It is in gaining the support and confidence of the state’s minorities which would be the smartest way to gain ground and make the BJP a formidable force,” said K Surendran, Kerala BJP chief.
Our win in the north-eastern states that are Christian-dominated clearly shows that it is only a matter of time before we become the favourable option for Malayalis
The BJP’s action plan to win over Kerala includes popularising a programme called Akshayashree under the Sahakar Bharathi programme. Sahakar Bharathi, the BJP says, is a non-political NGO “for spreading, purifying and strengthening the co-operative movement”. Through this, it has additionally been encouraging Gramin Samrudhi shops, Hindustan banks, and Mahila cells. The RSS and BJP have been utilizing this to construct on the cooperative motion and utilizing self-help teams (SHGs) to make political inroads.
“Our win in the north-eastern states that are Christian-dominated clearly shows that it is only a matter of time before we become the favourable option for Malayalis. As a unit we are strong and are confident of making PM Modi’s dream of 71-plus seats a reality soon,” Surendran said.
Read all of the Latest News , Breaking News and IPL 2022 Live Updates right here.
