Amit Shah is expected to visit Bengal on Thursday and Friday.
New Delhi:
In the midst of Bihar’s election, the BJP appears to have moved on to its next target – Bengal. Among the ruling party members who invest early in the state is the union interior minister Amit Shah.
Amit Shah, who has stayed away from the heat and dust of the Bihar countryside, will visit Bengal on Thursday and Friday.
Sources say the Home Secretary will focus largely on fixing the organizational structure of the BJP in West Bengal ahead of the Assembly elections next year.
There has been resentment in the party ranks in Bengal since top leader Rahul Sinha was removed from his post as national secretary and former Trinamool congress leaders like Mukul Roy and Anupam Hazra have been given posts.
Mukul Roy, who was once virtual number 2 for Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in Trinamool, has been appointed vice president.
For weeks, top BJP leaders in Bengal have been fighting the fires more than anything else.
Amit Shah’s visit is seen as an attempt to end the discord between the leaders that put the Bengal team in campaign mode.
During the two-day visit, he is expected to hold meetings with BJP stakeholders in Bankura and Kolkata, the leaders said.
Significantly, BJP president JP Nadda was also due to visit the state, but his trip was canceled.
Amit Shah’s visit is also seen in the context of her meeting with Governor of Bengal Jagdeep Dhankar, whose bitter feud with Mamata Banerjee unfolded on Twitter.
Mamata Banerjee, 65, faces a tough challenge from the BJP as she aims for a third consecutive term in Bengal, scheduled for polls in April next year.
The results of last year’s national elections confirmed his worst fears that the BJP – which has never ruled Bengal – has made inroads into the state and is now a very real threat, thanks to the Amit Shah’s strategy.
During the Durga Puja last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed Puja Pandals for the first time as the BJP sought to grab the attention of Bengal residents through its most popular festival. In his speech, Prime Minister Modi paid a rich tribute to the most famous Bengal sons and daughters and even spoke a few words in the language.
