CM writes to 1 crore voters
As part of the mass contact drive ahead of the December 7 assembly elections in Rajasthan, chief minister Vasundhara Raje has written to around one crore voters appealing them to vote for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), leaders said.
The Maha Jan Sampark abhiyan from November 2-4 will reach out to 1 crore voters in all 200 assembly segments to tell them about the state’s and Centre’s welfare schemes and seek votes in favour of the party. The BJP has lined up a series of programmes through November as part of its voter outreach.
“As a strategy it is good but given the strong anti-incumbency, it might be too little too late,” said political analyst Narayan Bareth. BJP leaders have faced complaints that they have been inaccessible for five years, he said.
“This is an attempt to woo and pacify voters. The BJP realises that appeals and public meetings of leaders is not enough. Public meetings of its leaders have also not garnered much support.”
Rajputs, Brahmins and Banias, the BJP’s traditional vote bank, are upset with the party, Bareth said. “The Rajputs are unhappy that the government
JAIPUR: MANVENDRA SINGH, legislator
has ignored them while Brahmins and Banias are unhappy with the government stance on the SC/ST Act and demonetisation and GST,” he said. “The SCs/STs, traditional Congress voters who had shifted to the BJP in the last elections, are inclined to return to the Congress fold.”
Under the Maha Jan Sampark abhiyan, all leaders -- from Raje
to Rajasthan poll in-charge Prakash Javadekar, MPs, MLAs, office-bearers and workers at booths -- will reach out to 1 crore people. “Two letters signed by the CM and state party president Madanlal Saini will be given to the people,” said state BJP vice president Mukesh Dadhich.
Raje’s letter begins by conveying Diwali greetings. It says 318 schemes of the central and state governments, such as Ujjwala, Mudra, Beti Bachao- Beti Padhao, Bhamashah, Annapurna Rasoi and Rajshri, have benefited crores of people.
BJP state mahila morcha president Madhu Sharma said, “Through its Kamal Diya programme on November 30, BJP women workers will meet Muslim women and tell them how the government schemes, providing gas cylinders and toilets, have benefitted women. Muslim women will also be told that the triple talaq law has benefited them.”
The Congress called the mass contact campaign an election gimmick. Congress spokesperson Archana Sharma says, “This mass contact programme will not benefit the BJP. They should have been in contact with voters earlier. Now facing defeat, they are doing such gimmicks.”