Journalism of Courage
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s praise for the BJP’s West Bengal unit president, Sukanta Majumdar, at the BJP national executive meeting in Delhi is being widely debated in political circles of the state, and is likely to boost the confidence of Majumdar, who took over in September 2021.
PM Modi is learnt to have said that despite BJP cadres facing the wrath of political violence after the West Bengal Assembly polls in 2021, the party is once again on a strong footing because of Majumdar’s leadership. This, despite the latter failing to lead the party to any significant victories in the subsequent civic and Assembly by-elections in the state.
According to party insiders, by doing so, the central leadership has hit two birds with one stone, saying Majumdar has tried to keep the party together, notwithstanding the constant infighting.
The undercurrent between former BJP state president and party MP Dilip Ghosh and Leader of Opposition in state Assembly Suvendu Adhikari since last year cost the party a huge loss in image, which, observers claim, did not go unnoticed by the central leadership. The open war of words between the two leaders was also criticised within the organisation. As a result, Majumdar had a difficult time keeping both lobbies together, besides establishing his authority within the organisation.
The party’s preparation for the forthcoming panchayat polls was getting affected by the frequent run-ins between the warring factions.
According to a senior leader of the party, Modi openly praising Majumdar signals that the central leadership is keen to put an end to the infighting and back him as the focus of the BJP in West Bengal.
Since Majumdar took charge in September 2021, the BJP was often criticised for having two factions, owing allegiance to Sukanta Majundar and Dilip Ghosh. Sources in the party said, another faction has now emerged that is aligned to Suvendu Adhikari.
It was also learnt that the party does not want to weaken its electoral prospects in the state by allowing the infighting to continue ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. “The party has set a target of a certain number of seats from West Bengal. It is serious about the organisational affairs in the state. We cannot afford to have an infighting, which will cause a huge setback to us. Besides, the panchayat polls are just around the corner. We need to put up a united face,” said a senior leader of the party on condition of anonymity.
Also, the message from the PM would come as a respite for the party unit, which is often criticised for not being able to retain the momentum it received in West Bengal after it won 18 seats in 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
Majumdar may get a further boost to lead the party from the front, as he is presiding over the two-day state executive committee meeting, that began on Friday in Durgapur, where the strategy for the forthcoming panchayat polls is being decided. Senior leaders of the party, including Ghosh and Adhikari are attending the meeting that will continue through Saturday.
The Trinamool Congress refused to attach much importance to the development. “The state BJP is divided into three groups. There is a lobby of old-timers, new comers and those who have migrated from other parties. No one in the party knows who is their actual leader. Two of their leaders are making comments against each other in broad daylight. Seeing this, the central leadership is trying to end this divide,” said TMC state general secretary Kunal Ghosh.
