BJP scalds Trinamool in Bengal

KOLKATA: The saffron surge in West Bengal in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls has put the political legitimacy of the state’ ruling Trinamool Congress at stake, analysts said on Thursday.
They also said that the BJP could come to power in the 2021 Assembly polls, or even earlier, by ousting the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool government in the state.
There “could be repetition” of what happened in the last two years of the erstwhile Left Front regime after most their candidates lost in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls. Eventually, Trinamool swept to power in the state in 2011.
Amid apprehensions of losing seats in the cow belt, the BJP made a strong pitch to woo voters in West Bengal and increased its vote share on the back of the rising popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, polarisation, and exploiting issues like nationalism.
Moreover, the BJP also got the help of leaders that the party poached from the Trinamool Congress, analysts said.
According to one, the BJP’s new narratives of nationalism and its campaign of “no appeasementa to any particular community have clearly paid dividend to the saffron party in the eastern state.”
“There has been a massive polarisation in West Bengal and it would not be surprising if the BJP comes to power in 2021 or even before, ousting Trinamool government,” political analyst Udayan Bandyopadhyay told IANS.
According to analysts, the BJP’s relentless attacks on the Trinamool supremo, accusing her of appeasement politics, helped polarisation in the state and the consolidation of Hindu votes.
“Trinamool Congress introduced a model of development in the state although it was widely criticised. In spite of the development work undertaken by the Mamata government, Hindus, who comprise over 70 per cent of electorate, felt let down in the state and believed that they were deprived of the fruits of development,” Nanda said.
The latest trends suggest that Trinamool Congress is leading in 21 seats while the saffron party was ahead in 20 seats.
Trinamool had won 34 Lok Sabha seats and the