Caste, Communication, Covid

Not just social strategies & digital tools, EC’s campaign rules will also influence UP, Punjab polls

- Badri Narayan

Every election in India appears as a new text, asking to be read differently, but most times we end up reading them in conventional ways. Social reality and people’s aspirations are changing continuously. These changes make every election a new political text. And these days, realities, aspirations and expectations interplay with each other in ways that make electoral democracy more ambiguous.

This ambiguity is in part thanks to image management in this media dominant overshadowing hard realities. So, it is tougher for political analysts to identify the issues and attach prefixes like ‘main’, and ‘dominant’.

One main issue is that poll results in five states are going to build and strengthen perceptions that may work as catalysts for political parties’ 2024 national election performances. This is true for BJP, Congress and regional parties.

BJP’s poll machine

BJP is fighting UP armed with its huge and vibrant election machine – star campaigners, multiple strategies and micromanagement of community identities and aspirations. The party’s strategies include trying to use Hindutva as a motivating power, claims on development and linking those to people’s aspirations, forming a large social alliance, a strong cadre base and strong digital play.