Prime Mover

Even as Mamata Banerjee revs up her party for the final battle, the BJP prepares to put the brakes on her vaulting ambition

- Romita Datta

When BJP president Amit Shah gave the ‘Ebar Bangla (Now Bengal)’ call as early as April 2017, many in the state thought it to be an empty boast. But Shah was persistent, frequenting Bengal, addressing rallies, dining with Dalit voters in mud huts, poaching Trinamool Congress (TMC) leaders, kicking up a storm against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s “Muslim appeasement”. And it has paid off: parts of the Bengal electorate which had begun to feel claustrophobic after seven years of TMC rule, now feel they have a credible alternative.

Realising the enormity of the situation, Mamata decided to take the fight to the saffron camp. ‘Aage Dilli shamla, pore bhabbi Bangla (Try to hold on to Delhi, then give Bengal a thought)’ was her new counter to the BJP. This at a time the BJP was feeling a bit defensive: bypoll losses across the country suggested that the double whammy of demonetisation and GST had rattled its support base, especially the middle class. Cashing in on the growing dissatisfaction, Mamata decided to take on the Modi-Amit duo with a ‘Chalo Dilli’ call. As 2019 began, she stepped up the attacks. At the United India rally on January 19 in Calcutta, she had an impressive line-up of national leaders from as many as 22 political parties attending.