M Hasan
Lucknow, December 27: In forthcoming prestigious West Bengal assembly elections, where the resurgent BJP, is determined to wrest power from TMC’s Mamata Banerjee, Ayodhya is going to play significant role in conversion of Bengal’s cultural Hindus into “political Hindus”.
The high emotional attachment of people of West Bengal with Ram Temple in Ayodhya is quite well-known as bus-loads of pilgrims almost everyday has been a regular phenomenon in temple town over the years. Several hundreds of devotees descended on Ayodhya last week with huge offerings to Ram Temple. “Of nearly 4000 to 5000 daily arrival of devotees to Ram temple over the years, there has been substantial numbers from West Bengal”, commented a senior security officer in Ayodhya.
Now the BJP hopes to reach out to the people with its popular Ram temple movement face Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who will be star campaigner. During the last few years, the BJP and RSS workers have been extensively working in all over the state and reaching out to far flung rural areas with Ram temple project.
With West Bengal election due early next year, the Temple trust has also decided to start construction work from the middle of January 2021 and also commence mass level fund raising drive in which there is plan to give thrust to West Bengal with beautifully decorated Rs ten post card size coupon for temple donation. The temple trust plan is to connect with nearly nine crore people through fund-raising exercise in the country.
Political observers here feel that apart from other developmental issues in UP, Yogi is also going to lay emphasis on final commencement of construction of temple and the deep emotional bond of people of West Bengal with it. In 2019 Lok Sabha election a slogan of “Jai Shri Ram versus Jai Maa Kali” was raised during election campaign but then the BJP had carefully kept away from it and scuttled machination of the TMC. The BJP would certainly not want such types of slogans to divide Hindu votes in the state during forthcoming elections.
With Bengal’s 30% Muslims known to be off the BJP’s radar and firmly with the TMC, both parties are going to be locked in desperate combat for 70% Bengali Hindu vote in which Ayodhya’s upcoming Ram temple could play prominent role for “BJP connect”. The BJP through aggressive “Project Ayodhya” has succeeded in widening its base in West Bengal. And now the UP chief minister is all set to counter TMC propaganda against the BJP. Yogi’s role in development of Ayodhya during the last three years is well-known and is being publicised in election-bound state. Last week Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya had two-day visit to the state to launch campaign there.
