GUARDING ITS BASTION

AFTER AN EMPHATIC WIN IN THE STATE ELECTION, THE BJP LOOKS SECURE IN ITS CENTRAL INDIA FORTRESS. FOR A BATTERED CONGRESS, THE ONLY HOPE LIES IN EXPLOITING ANY CHINK IN THE SAFFRON ARMOUR 

- RAHUL NORONHA

On APRIL 21, KAMAL NAIK, A 50-YEAR-OLD FARMER AND BHARATIYA JANATA PARTY (BJP) WORKER FROM BHOPAL'S HUZUR ASSEMBLY SEGMENT, received a call informing him about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's road show in the state capital three days later. Naik, who had been camping at a wheat procurement centre awaiting his turn to sell his produce, at first couldn't understand the need for such an event in Bhopal-a BJP stronghold that the party has been winning handsomely since 1989. Nonetheless, he gathered a group of people and reached the venue at the designated time. "Victory in Bhopal is a foregone conclusion, but this is how we contest elections. Nothing is left to chance," Naik remarked, finally comprehending the rationale behind the PM's rally, as he waited for his arrival under the scorching sun.

Months after its comprehensive victory in the 2023 assembly election, the BJP indeed left nothing to chance as it went back to seek a stronger mandate in the ongoing Lok Sabha election. The party's main poll plank, as in other states, hinges on its manifesto, titled 'Modi ki Guarantee, highlighting the work done by the Modi regime over the past decade and the commitment to continue with the 'transformative growth' of four core groups-Gareeb (poor), Yuva (youth), Annadata (farmers), and Nari (women). In a way, the contest in each seat is being turned into a battle between Modi and the Congress candidate, as the party's biggest trump cardthe PM-is expected to lead it to another emphatic victory.