Science of Electioneering
Outlook|December 21, 2023
Unmasking the factors the BJP has used in every election since Modi became the supremo
Ashutosh
Science of Electioneering

AN election in India is a beautiful game. It reassures people that democracy is still alive and the public has faith in its functioning. Like in a game, the team which plays with planning; does its homework seriously; and, puts into play its strategies before the start of the game, wins the battle. In the recently held assembly elections, the BJP could defeat the Congress, which was the favourite of pollsters and political analysts, because of its better planning and micro-management till the last mile. In fact, the BJP, under Narendra Modi, has evolved a science, a formula, tested several times in its political laboratory, for fighting and winning elections. Like a scientific praxis, an election infrastructure has been created. In every election, this science is put into motion with minor tweaking, depending upon the political pitch of the state. In these elections, in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, the same template was in full play. This template is an amalgam of Hindutva, organisational muscle power, propaganda and ultra-modern technological equipment, which together created a beast that is mythologised as unbeatable. This apparatus can be fragmented into the following subheadings.

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