The Hindu : New Delhi News : BJP to restart Lok Sabha election preparations

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BJP to restart Lok Sabha election preparations

Neena Vyas

Hopes for new allies dashed after Assembly elections

Coordination with RSS seen as crucial
Terrorism plank has failed to pay dividends

NEW DELHI: With its hopes for tying up with new allies dashed after its poor performance in the recent Assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party is getting ready to resume preparations for the Lok Sabha polls this summer.

The parliamentary board has decided that the central election committee would meet in January to again take up the task of selection of candidates for the Lok Sabha elections. The process was started several months earlier and then abandoned.

The BJP leadership’s meeting with Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh leaders at the residence of the Leader of the Opposition L.K. Advani, and not at the RSS headquarters in Jhandewalan, is also being seen as part of the party’s preparations. Coordination with the RSS and its many front organisations is seen as crucial by an influential section of the leadership.

From January 16, for a month, workers’ conventions will be held in each constituency. Workers from every polling booth are expected to attend, party general secretary Arun Jaitley told reporters after the board meeting.

A discussion also took place on suggestions received for the party’s manifesto and election issues that the BJP may take up. Murli Manohar Joshi, in charge of this work, briefed the board on progress made.

The search for new issues follows an assessment that the terrorism plank built assiduously for the last four years failed to pay electoral dividends in the Assembly elections.

The other big issue it had raised – price increase – is also threatening to give diminishing returns as inflation has moderated and is expected to fall further.

A senior leader admitted that the party was despairing of finding new allies. Other than the five parties that make up the National Democratic Alliance – BJP, the Shiv Sena, the Janata Dal (United), the Biju Janata Dal and the Akali Dal – the leadership has tied up with the Asom Gana Parishad for an alliance in Assam, with the Indian National Lok Dal of Om Prakash Chautala in Haryana, and it is trying to rope in the Rashtriya Lok Dal of Ajit Singh in Uttar Pradesh.

As of now, the NDA could expand to seven or maybe eight parties as against the nearly two dozen parties and independents that were part of the NDA government in 1999.

Citing an example, one leader said: “In 1999, we had the National Conference in the NDA, but now that party has moved to the United Progressive Alliance. We can hardly go with the People’s Democratic Front.”

About a year ago, hopes were high in the BJP of an alliance with the All-India Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, but now that the AIADMK has gone with the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and to the so-called Third Front, the BJP has not been able to find any partner in Tamil Nadu. “We can announce our candidates for all of 40 seats – 39 Tamil Nadu and one Pondicherry,” one leader remarked humorously.

As for the RLD, it would mean giving away half a dozen western U.P. seats, so that should not come in the way of the party finalising its candidates for the rest of the 74 seats.

State units

All State units of the party have been asked to finalise their shortlists of candidates so that these are ready to be discussed by the central election committee later this month.

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