The BJP has been decreased to 12 seats in West Bengal within the Lok Sabha polls.
Kolkata:
The second successive setback for the BJP in West Bengal has uncovered fissures inside the state unit, with a former president hitting out on the native management and declaring flaws in the way in which the marketing campaign was run.
Former West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh, who was on the helm when the get together shocked the Trinamool Congress by successful 18 of the state’s 42 Lok Sabha seats in 2019, fired the primary volley on Thursday when he quoted former Prime Minister, and one of many get together’s most revered figures, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, in a publish on X.
“Preserve one factor in thoughts: even one outdated Karyakarta of the get together shouldn’t be uncared for. If vital, let ten new Karyakartas be separated. As a result of the outdated staff are the assure of our victory. Trusting new Karyakartas too rapidly will not be advisable – Atal Bihari Vajpayee,” Mr Ghosh wrote.
Whereas the previous state BJP president didn’t title anyone, the publish was broadly seen as hinting at Chief of the Opposition within the state Meeting, Suvendu Adhikari, who had give up the Trinamool Congress and joined the BJP in 2020. Whereas Sukanta Majumdar is the Bengal BJP chief now, Mr Adhikari was seen to be calling the pictures so far as ticket distribution for the Lok Sabha polls was involved.
The BJP was decreased to 12 seats within the elections and the constituencies the get together misplaced included Medinipur, the place Mr Ghosh was the sitting MP. As an alternative of being fielded from there once more, the senior chief was made to contest from the Bardhaman-Durgapur seat, the place he misplaced to the Trinamool’s Kirti Azad by a margin of over 1.37 lakh votes. Mr Ghosh’s alternative for the Medinipur constituency, Agnimitra Paul, was additionally defeated.
This prompted one other assault from Mr Ghosh on Friday. “For over a 12 months, I’ve spent all my money and time in Medinipur. However I wasn’t allowed to contest from there. The lead to each seats (Medinipur and Bardhaman-Durgapur) is for all to see,” he mentioned in Bengali.
Implying that he had strengthened the get together at a time when it didn’t have a lot of a standing in Bengal, Mr Ghosh added, “This time, votes in Bengal had been sought within the title of PM Narendra Modi, now we have a stronger organisation, and so many leaders have joined the get together. In 2021 (Bengal Meeting polls), we did not have so many individuals and in 2019 (Lok Sabha polls) there was no person, I went round campaigning and there have been central leaders.”
“This time, PM Modi went virtually in all places. We have now so many MLAs and MPs now, why did the outcomes end up the way in which they did,” he requested.
Mr Ghosh additionally pointed to former Union minister Debasree Choudhury being requested to contest from the Kolkata Dakshin seat as an alternative of Raiganj, which she had gained in 2019. This was seen by many because the BJP chief suggesting that the outdated guard within the get together was being sidelined by new entrants like Mr Adhikari.
The just-concluded Lok Sabha election is the second time the BJP has fallen manner wanting its personal expectations since its astounding efficiency in 2019. In the course of the 2021 Meeting polls, the get together had set itself a goal of successful 200 of the state’s 294 constituencies, however had ended up with solely 77.
‘Leaders Self-Centred’
For the Trinamool Congress, which has gone up from 22 Lok Sabha seats to 29, Mr Ghosh’s remarks supplied a welcome alternative to hit out on the BJP.
“The BJP’s Bengal management is a tragedy. The leaders are self-centred. They don’t care concerning the individuals. The BJP had 18 MPs they usually did nothing for the individuals of their constituencies. Folks perceive that it’s all political,” mentioned Saayoni Ghosh, Trinamool Congress chief and the newly elected MP from Jadavpur.