As we entered into the election season in Gujarat, almost everyone was sure that BJP were the favorites. They were sure to win given such a strong support they had enjoyed for so long and the opposition was nowhere to be seen. The only other player in the state - Congress is any way seeing a doom day for a few years now and their existence was notional at best. And then, the state has given the country a Prime Minister - one who was their favorite for more than a decade.
However, soon enough doubts were cast and people started believing that Congress was catching up and soon would at least be able to create a dent in the final tally. Their "yuvraaj" was out in the field and for the first time seemingly taking charge. He was directly attacking the Prime Minister and was making fewer mistakes than what he has been making in the past. His party too was supporting him with best of the strategies they could bring to the table.
I still was - and to a certain extent still am - convinced that BJP would anyway take the state given their strongholds. However, the time I started believing that the party itself was nervous about its chances was when I saw the change in their campaign strategy. Some of the blunders that I believe is what I would talk about here and below are some of the questions that I would like to ask any big-wig from the party - I hope someone does!
Why change the narrative away from development?
Mr. Modi was riding on a development wave when he swept the country with votes and took the seat at the center. Masses believed in the dream he showed and most believed he would bring a positive change to the country. A foundational component of the dream was the fact that he had achieved it already in his home state and Gujarat was a model of development in itself. Now that he was the Prime Minister it was logical for everyone to believe that work done in state and the center would be the content of any poll strategy BJP comes up with. However, this was not the case to be !!
The Prime Minister himself and the entire party behind him focused solely on the other side - Congress and its soon to be President. They would talk about the wrongs done by the party which has already almost been decimated. They got what they deserved and no longer carry the burden to prove the charges wrong - there is an inherent "statute of limitation" to such things. This has simply led to the electorate considering what happened to all the work done in the state and the center. Who would talk about it?
Is Pakistan really involved in the State Elections?
The Prime Minister bringing in the enemy state from across the border was definitely a bummer for me. While we are used to seeing lows in elections and 'jumlas' taking up the rhetorics, however, alleging involvement of a foreign country was a first for me. While the impact may not be high for the moment, it has much wider implications and connotations. For starters, foreign policy is the sole domain of the Union Government and it is their responsibility to prevent any such interference well before it is thought about. If the PM was aware of such an interest, it should have been checked long ago. I am not sure of the thought process behind this attempt of fear psychosis, however, I am sure that this could actually have been avoided. Who are you trying to scare away?
Why blame the only person who gets the benefit of a doubt?
The entire BJP bandwagon jumped on including the former PM, Dr. Manmohan Singh, into the conspiracy of a cross-border conduit. But did the party and their leaders not recognize that he is the single person in the entire Congress party who enjoys the respect of masses including his critics. He is world renowned personality and a famed economist. During the worst phase of corruption charges, he personally was able to keep himself scath free. What was the need to bring him into the equation when he wasn't to be? Of course, the other party took the cue and made him the face of their response to this allegation and I for one would have turned away had I been voting.
Hopefully, someone would have thought through these before going ahead with these and had a better judgment than mine. It could very well be that they had captured an underlying nerve, but for a voter like me - young, educated, politically aware and responsive - these were definitely not expected from politically astute minds that Mr. Modi and Mr. Shah are. \
What do you think about these and do you consider these blunders? Or is it just part of a game? Pour out all your thoughts in the comments because that is the purpose of this portal - expressing yourself!
However, soon enough doubts were cast and people started believing that Congress was catching up and soon would at least be able to create a dent in the final tally. Their "yuvraaj" was out in the field and for the first time seemingly taking charge. He was directly attacking the Prime Minister and was making fewer mistakes than what he has been making in the past. His party too was supporting him with best of the strategies they could bring to the table.
I still was - and to a certain extent still am - convinced that BJP would anyway take the state given their strongholds. However, the time I started believing that the party itself was nervous about its chances was when I saw the change in their campaign strategy. Some of the blunders that I believe is what I would talk about here and below are some of the questions that I would like to ask any big-wig from the party - I hope someone does!
Why change the narrative away from development?
Mr. Modi was riding on a development wave when he swept the country with votes and took the seat at the center. Masses believed in the dream he showed and most believed he would bring a positive change to the country. A foundational component of the dream was the fact that he had achieved it already in his home state and Gujarat was a model of development in itself. Now that he was the Prime Minister it was logical for everyone to believe that work done in state and the center would be the content of any poll strategy BJP comes up with. However, this was not the case to be !!
The Prime Minister himself and the entire party behind him focused solely on the other side - Congress and its soon to be President. They would talk about the wrongs done by the party which has already almost been decimated. They got what they deserved and no longer carry the burden to prove the charges wrong - there is an inherent "statute of limitation" to such things. This has simply led to the electorate considering what happened to all the work done in the state and the center. Who would talk about it?
Is Pakistan really involved in the State Elections?
The Prime Minister bringing in the enemy state from across the border was definitely a bummer for me. While we are used to seeing lows in elections and 'jumlas' taking up the rhetorics, however, alleging involvement of a foreign country was a first for me. While the impact may not be high for the moment, it has much wider implications and connotations. For starters, foreign policy is the sole domain of the Union Government and it is their responsibility to prevent any such interference well before it is thought about. If the PM was aware of such an interest, it should have been checked long ago. I am not sure of the thought process behind this attempt of fear psychosis, however, I am sure that this could actually have been avoided. Who are you trying to scare away?
Why blame the only person who gets the benefit of a doubt?
The entire BJP bandwagon jumped on including the former PM, Dr. Manmohan Singh, into the conspiracy of a cross-border conduit. But did the party and their leaders not recognize that he is the single person in the entire Congress party who enjoys the respect of masses including his critics. He is world renowned personality and a famed economist. During the worst phase of corruption charges, he personally was able to keep himself scath free. What was the need to bring him into the equation when he wasn't to be? Of course, the other party took the cue and made him the face of their response to this allegation and I for one would have turned away had I been voting.
Hopefully, someone would have thought through these before going ahead with these and had a better judgment than mine. It could very well be that they had captured an underlying nerve, but for a voter like me - young, educated, politically aware and responsive - these were definitely not expected from politically astute minds that Mr. Modi and Mr. Shah are. \
What do you think about these and do you consider these blunders? Or is it just part of a game? Pour out all your thoughts in the comments because that is the purpose of this portal - expressing yourself!
