Voting has been held for the Maharashtra-Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh assembly by-elections. The counting of votes will take place on November 23. But exit poll results released after the voting show that the Bharatiya Janata Party appears to be gaining a big lead not only in Maharashtra but also in Jharkhand. Not only this, the BJP is also considered to win more seats in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly by-elections. The shocking results of the Lok Sabha and then Haryana elections have put the exit polls in doubt. In such a situation, it can only be called a guess. But if the exit poll is not the whole truth, then it can at least be considered a scientific process on the basis of 50 to 60 percent success. Although the Lok Sabha election exit poll predicted 400 seats, the NDA government was formed. Similarly, in the exit polls after the Haryana Assembly elections, the Congress was expected to form the government, but in the result, the Congress’ vote share was almost equal to that of the BJP. What I mean is that we cannot completely reject exit polls. Are these reasons responsible for the plight of the opposition as seen in the exit polls of the assembly elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand?
1- Opposition fighting among themselves
At the time of the Lok Sabha elections, the people of the country felt that the opposition could unite and offer a strong alternative against the NDA. But that didn’t happen. Whether it was Mamata Banerjee or Arvind Kejriwal, Akhilesh Yadav or Rahul Gandhi, people saw everyone fighting among themselves and digging holes for each other. Even in Maharashtra and Jharkhand, until the last moment the opposition was waging a fight with each other over seat distribution. In Maharashtra, Uddhav Thackeray was considered a contender for the CM post, while the Congress was also unwilling to give him any consideration. Until the last day in the MVA it had not been decided which party candidate would occupy each seat. The opposition received the public informally. The opposition only observed the juggling of numbers. Muslims, Marathas and Dalits will definitely vote for us. We can make anyone a candidate. However, the situation was similar with Mahayuti as well. But there was less chaos there compared to MVA. The same was the situation of the opposition in Jharkhand.
2-Leftist anti-Hindu stance of Congress
The Bharatiya Janata Party, through its propaganda machinery, has shown that the Congress is an anti-Hindu party. Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi was talking continuously like leftists used to do before. Whether it was the question of participation according to population or the continuous rhetoric against capitalists, it turned them into anti-development. However, Rahul Gandhi, once in the middle, also gave reasons for not being against development. But public opinion does not change so quickly. The Congress Party let the files of the 2014 Anthony Report gather dust. In the Anthony report it was made clear that the party’s anti-Hindu image was causing losses in the elections.
3-Rahul Gandhi’s emphasis on caste politics
Rahul Gandhi’s demand for a caste census and promise to increase the reservation limit also appears to be counterproductive. Even after the failure in Haryana, Rahul Gandhi continued to talk about caste census. Prime Minister Narendra Modi repeatedly explained to the public how caste enumeration would pose a threat to the OBC and Dalit reservation. Perhaps the public understood this.
The new strategy of the 4-BJP
The Bharatiya Janata Party did not campaign much with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Haryana. The party followed the same strategy in Maharashtra and Jharkhand as well. Local leaders appeared in the campaign. This time Devendra Fadnavis held maximum number of rallies and meetings in Maharashtra. The focus was on local problems. Its benefits are visible in Maharashtra and Jharkhand.
5- Sangh support worked wonders
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh also had a good fight this time in the Maharashtra and Jharkhand assembly elections. Sangh workers played an important role in spreading the BJP slogan of “Batenge to Katenge” among the people. Sangh’s Lok Jagran Manch was distributing pamphlets door to door. These asked the public to learn from the Lok Sabha election results and come together and vote for the BJP-led alliance in the Maharashtra Assembly elections. In the pamphlet, people were advised to be wary of rumors being spread about the Constitution, reservation and Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. In addition, information was provided on land jihad, love jihad, religious conversion, stoning and riots, etc.
