BJP ropes in RSS to stop exodus, thwart TMC in West Bengal

In an effort to address the growing sense of abandonment by the central leadership, Bharatiya Janata Party has sought help from its ideological fountainhead Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh to strengthen its organisation in West Bengal.

A meeting in this regard took place on June 16 in the national capital where the senior functionaries of the party and many senior functionaries of RSS affiliates met to chalk out a strategy on how to take on the ‘oppressive leadership’ of Trinamool Congress in the state

Sources stated that the decision to seek active help from RSS came after many of the top leaders abandoned the party in wake of pressure from Trinamool Congress.

Sources in the RSS said its affiliates can actively aid the BJP in strengthening the organisation and breaching the political hotbeds of Left and now TMC. Its cadre has been asked to work more closely with the state unit of the BJP.

To ensure that BJP workers do not feel abandoned the top leadership including party chief J P Nadda and Union home minister Amit Shah are also frequently visiting the state.

West Bengal is one of the states where the BJP is trying to expand and hopes for better performance in 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

The aim is to help the party for 2024 Lok Sabha polls and later for the assembly polls. 

Why the need to rope in RSS

There is a general sentiment among the state BJP that Bengal in hands of TMC that promotes minority appeasement is contributing to destabilising the country. As it is also a border state, intrusion by unwanted elements has mounted troubles in keeping the integrity and sovereignty of the country intact.

Sources stated that Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad and Sahakar Bharati will be at the forefront of the plan with their active work among workers, students and cooperatives. Many in the Sangh and party believe that Communists and later TMC built their political base among the poor through labour unions.

BMS works aggressively with the labour unions and workers. “It is there that the party wants to make an impact and destabilise the political foundation of TMC whereas ABVP will work among youths and align the next generation with them," sources added. 

The plan is also to free the campus politics from the clutches of TMC and the Left. 

Moreover, the party is on working on a plan to groom the future leadership. The new appointments in the state unit have more youngsters who can work years before they are groomed as seasoned politicians.