Now many of the hardcore modi supporters would have jumped to the conclusion that i am gonna rake up the 2002 riots again.Be assured, this article has nothing to do with 2002 but will reflect the mistakes that he can avoid in a bid to get closer to the magic number of 272.No body can deny a modi wave in north india at this point of time which is getting stronger as the time passes.This makes bjp supporters confident that they will sweep the 2014 polls,they maybe right but there is nothing wrong in taking a bit of precaution.
1)Modi victory in all the northern states except j&k is a given,,if anyone had a doubt,it was gone after the assembly results announced on dec 8th.The positive for the bjp is that even though it was fighting for a third term in both chhatisgarh and madhya pradesh,there was no anti incumbency wave!!In fact madhya pradesh witnessed a pro-incumbency wave.
But the problem lies in the southern and eastern parts of country,where bjp has no or very marginal presence at present.I emphasize the word at present to highlight that what AAP achieved in delhi could be done by bjp here too.Bjp needs to utilize its huge workforce of rss workers to start door to door campaigning, highlighting modi achievements.Do this for 6 months and u will have bjp competing with regional parties in these areas.So all in all bjp must focus on the eastern and southern india much much more than north.
2)Connect with muslims is a must for bjp if it hopes to expand.Now i know people say that muslims will never align with bjp so there is no need to waste energy.But i totally disagree.Thee was an article by surjit bhalla in indian express that showed clearly with govt data that muslims in gujrat were more progressive and rich than their counterparts in west bengal,uttar pradesh,bihar etc.So why not project this??Why not involve muslim religious leaders and show them the data??Why??There is no harm in trying to reach out.
3)Exposure of modi in media is only through rallies which are telecast live.This is a mistake.Modi must be willing to come to tv studious for interviews regularly to emphasize his points.It dosen't even require an effort,journalists could be asked to come to him and take his views on selective topics.Granted he makes many points in rallies but urban middle class seldom goes to rallies so to tap this group even more,television exposure is a must.
I am sure following this advice bjp has nothing to loose,albeit they may win more seats for 2014!!