UP formula to guide BJP in other states

LUCKNOW/ALLAHABAD: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) plans to replicate its successful Uttar Pradesh formula in other state assembly polls.

The party has decided to prepare a special booklet capturing the essence and the strategy of its landslide win in the Hindi heartland state to guide key BJP functionaries right down to the district level in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh.

The party has asked its UP unit to prepare the booklet. The move comes amid speculation that the BJP may opt for possible midterm polls in Maharashtra.

“As elections will be held in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh next, this booklet is being prepared to spell out the strategy adopted by the party in UP. The booklet will allow local BJP leaders and key party workers to study the measures and replicate them in different states after making changes, if, required, in accordance with local needs,” BJP state general secretary Vijay Bahadur Pathak told Hindustan Times.

He said that the booklet, which is an in advanced stage of preparation, will have five sections, each devoted to a specific aspect —booth management, campaigning, use of social media and IT tools, public orientation and engagement, besides public feedback. The 2017 UP polls had presented a stiff challenge to the party which knew it would not be easy to match its performance in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections in which the BJP polled 42.6% votes and bagged 71 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state.

Effective management of resources, smart tools and wooing backward and dalit voters enabled the party to pull off a great win.

“The aim is to share our election approach model with colleagues within the party through this booklet. It will also mention the four public welfare schemes —Jan Dhan Yojana, Ujjawala gas yojana, construction of toilets under Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan and the herbal urea scheme — that impressed the voters of UP,” he added.

State BJP spokesperson Manish Shukla said the effective use of the BJP war-room will also be explained in the booklet. “We prepared a database of 14 crore voters of the state with figures about their gender, caste and economic profile to better understand them. The 11.52 lakh-strong team of booth-level workers helped the party reach voters in even the most remote part of the state. Statewide membership drives, details of other events like Parivartan Yatras, backward wing meetings and wish-list of voters used to draft the manifesto will all find a place in the booklet,” he said.

We prepared a database of 14 crore voters of the state with figures about their gender, caste and economic profile to better understand them MANISH SHUKLA , State BJP spokesperson