BJP vs Opposition's agenda for 2024 general elections
3 min read . Updated: 20 Apr 2023, 10:52 AM IST
PremiumOpposition parties are trying to form a coalition against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), while the saffron party is conducting extensive surveys at booth level to win more seats in the 2024 general elections.
In India, all national parties have started massive preparations for the 2024 general elections. The opposition parties discovered a roadmap to defeat the ruling government, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) launched its blueprint to carry out nationwide campaigns to win more seats in the parliamentary polls that are scheduled to take place next year.
Several political parties are still attempting to build a coalition against the Saffron party, but their unanimous demands for a caste census and the removal of the reservation cap could be a binding factor and hand them what a section of leaders feels the "Brahmastra" to counter the BJP and its Hindutva plank.
The issues of caste census and reservation not only put all opposition parties on the same page but leaders feel it could also help them win back many backward classes who have veered towards the BJP in the recent past.
At a DMK-convened conference, RJD leader and Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav summed it up for opposition parties when he said that the best way to beat the BJP's politics of "polarisation" was through social justice-based politics.
The Opposition has spoken with unanimity on general issues such as inflation and rising employment but lacked cohesiveness on specific issues like the Adani matter.
However, with the issues of the caste-based census and removal of the reservation cap, opposition parties have found an arrow with which they can hit multiple targets at one go -- it forges instant unity in the opposition ranks, puts the BJP on the back foot as it is yet to spell out its stance on them categorically, and prepares a counter for the Hindutva push expected closer to the polls.
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray also made a pitch for opposition unity in order to defeat the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and said an alternative would emerge on its own.
The list of ‘Opposition Unity’ goes on with Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge dialed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and stressed the need for opposition parties to unite against the BJP ahead of the 2024 general elections, PTI reported.
Kharge's outreach is part of the Congress' efforts to bring several like-minded parties together on a common platform in their fight against the BJP. The Congress president will be hosting a meeting of senior leaders of various parties in the next few days to chalk out a common program. Kharge has already spoken to a number of opposition leaders.
On the other hand, BJP has planned to conduct extensive surveys to formulate the BJP's strategy to fight the general elections. People involved in the matter said that some surveys are already taking place and will continue till the 2024 elections, while a total of four key surveys are being tallied by BJP national president JP Nadda to decide the strategy by this May.
One of the key functionaries who was part of the team of eight persons in Delhi who coordinated the results from all states said that the idea came from Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
He said that around 40,000 booth workers covered 100,000 booths across all 543 parliamentary constituencies and polled 10 million respondents.
The saffron party has also up the ante to woo the Muslim community and will bring an aggressive approach to bringing Muslims to the party fold. BJP Minority Morcha will launch a special 'Modi Mitra' outreach program from April 20 onwards till February 2024.
It has selected 65 Muslim-dominated Lok Sabha seats where the Muslim population is more than 30%. BJP's Minority Morcha will start this campaign after Eid.
Under this campaign, BJP Minority Morcha will run different programs in all these Lok Sabha seats. Starting from door-to-door campaigns to the use of social media, small seminars, advertising campaigns, etc, the party will showcase the Modi government's welfare works for the Muslim community.
The party has also planned to organize over 45 rallies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in these constituencies. The BJP has tasked its three national general secretaries Sunil Bansal, Vinod Tawde, and Tarun Chugh to undertake preparations for these rallies.
(With inputs from agencies)