The voting pattern indicates that the Muslim voters rejected outright the BJP’s oft-repeated “Sab Ka Saath Sab Ka Vikas Sab Ka Saath Sab Ka Vishwas” slogan.
All the opposition parties, including the Congress, the CPI, the CPI-M, the RJD, the SP, the Shiv Sena, the BSP, the AAP, the Abdullahs’ NC and the Muftis’ PDP, and all the “secular” commentators, have been asserting day-in and day-out since May 2 that the people of Bengal “defeated and destroyed BJP”. It was on May 2 that the EC announced the election results. Significantly, neither the Congress nor any of the Left parties, including the CPI-M, which had misruled West Bengal for 34 long years, could even open its account.
Did the people of Bengal really defeat and destroy the BJP? The answer to this question lies in the election-related statistics, which are now in the public domain. It would be only appropriate to first refer to the political status the BJP enjoyed in the last Legislative Assembly of West Bengal and then examine the official statistics to find if the BJP was really defeated and destroyed by the people of Bengal in the 2021 Assembly elections.
The BJP increased its tally from three in 2016 to 78 in 2021 and also increased its vote-share from 10% in 2016 to 38.13% and snatched the office of the Leader of Opposition from the Congress. 41.6% of Hindu voters voted for the BJP.
The BJP had won a paltry three out of 294 seats in 2016. Its vote-share was only a paltry 10%. It was not the main opposition in the Bengal Assembly; the Congress with 44 seats was. The third-largest chunk of legislators in the Bengal Assembly belonged to all the Left parties. The fact of the matter is that the BJP was virtually non-existent in the West Bengal Assembly before 2021.
And now a reflection on the 2021 election-related statistics. What do they say and suggest? The BJP fielded 291 candidates. Its candidate Suvendu Adhikari defeated the two-time Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Bannerjee in Nandigram by over 1600 votes. The BJP won 78 seats. It came second in no less than 200 Assembly constituencies and third in 13 constituencies. The BJP won in as many as 48 constituencies previously held by the TMC. In other words, it performed well in the constituencies which were held previously by the TMC, and not by the Congress or the Left. The BJP’s vote-share was 38.13%.
To be more precise, the BJP increased its tally from three in 2016 to 78 in 2021 and also increased its vote-share from 10% in 2016 to 38.13% and snatched the office of the Leader of Opposition from the Congress. 41.6% of Hindu voters voted for the BJP. The Hindu voters constituted almost 70% of the total electorate in West Bengal. On May 10, Suvendu Adhikari was elected as the Leader of Opposition in the Bengal Assembly.
What was the vote share-share of other parties? The TMC, which won 213 seats, got 47.94% of the total votes polled. These votes included almost all the Muslim votes, which constituted over 27% of West Bengal’s total electors. In fact, 91% of Muslim voters voted for TMC. 25.5% of Hindu voters also voted for the TMC, the Congress, the Left and other parties and independent candidates. Leave aside the methods, including the wheel-chair and appeal to the Muslim voters that they must vote for the TMC candidates en-block, Mamata Bannerjee used to win the Bengal elections.
All this should clear all the cobwebs of confusion being created by the non-BJP parties, secular commentators and the biased international media and websites and establish that the BJP performed exceedingly well in West Bengal. The voting pattern also established that the Muslim voters rejected outright the BJP’s oft-repeated “Sab Ka Saath Sab Ka Vikas Sab Ka Saath Sab Ka Vishwas” slogan. Over five crore scholarships to the Muslim students, almost two dozen special schemes for them and many other steps taken by the Modi Government after 2014 failed to win Muslims’ Vishwas.
The voting pattern in the neighbouring Assam, where the BJP-led NDA won the election for the second time in a row, was no different. The BJP-led NDA won 75 seats in the 126-member Assam Legislative Assembly. The BJP repeated its 2016 performance in 2021 by winning 60 seats, mostly from the Upper Assam and the Barak Valley. It had fielded eight Muslim candidates but all suffered humiliating defeats. The Muslims didn’t vote for the BJP Muslim candidates.
In contrast, Congress won 29 seats. 16 of its winning candidates were Muslims. The remaining 13 seats went to all other communities, including the Hindus. If in West Bengal, the BJP defeated Mamata Bannerjee, in Assam, it defeated the Assam Pradesh Congress president Ripun Bora.
As for the ally of the Congress, Badruddin Ajmal’s All-India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), also called the party of Bangladeshi Muslims, won 21 seats and all its winning candidates were Muslims. The Congress-led alliance “Mahajot”, which won 50 seats, comprised the Congress, the CPI, the CPI-M, the CPI (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation, the Anchalik Gana Marcha (AGM) and the Bodoland Peoples’ Front (BPF). The Congress and the AIUDF won most of the seats in the Lower Assam.
It is hardly necessary to reflect more on what happened in Bengal and Assam and how the Muslim voters voted as the statistics speak for themselves. Suffice it to say that the BJP has to review its whole election strategy given the fact that the Muslims would never give votes to it and that their one-point agenda is to defeat it and vote for parties that could defeat it.
Note:
1. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of PGurus.
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Mamata plans of uniting Muslims and winning all the seats in the border districts and dividing the HIndus has given her an outstanding victory. Now all the other parties are going to copy her. Punjab CM ,captain Amarinder Singh has declared one district as Muslim majority district. IN few years, Muslim population will grow to neighboring districts also and Sikhs will get out of Punjab and settle in other states. This is going to be a huge security risk for the nation. congress wants to win the state in any way Badals have lost people's support and BJP is not a major player in Punjab. Mamata and Kejrival will continue to attack the PM, NDA polices and claim victim hood every day. Since the govt has decided to give citizenship to all non Muslim citizens coming from different nations, we must make sure they are settled well and mean while we should start expelling illegals from west Bengal. Mamata is going to play the same dirty game of Kashmiri separatists and others.
The only way any party can win Muslim votes is by loosing Hindu votes. It need to divide Hindus in such a way that only one section of Hindu votes for that party. It is required because Muslim voters are less than 50% in those areas which are not in Pakistan/Bangladesh/Kashmir valley
BJP's "Sabka saath, Sabka vikas, Sabka Viswas" was failed not only in Assam and WB. It failed miserably in failed in Kerala and TN also. The defeat of Mrs.Khushbu in thousand lights constituency and the rout of BJP in Kerala proves this beyond doubt. No where in India it will work.
Dear Hari OM, good analysis. BJP scored too many self goals. Begum mamata was planting thousands of illegal bangladeshis and rohingyas in the border districts and making them eligible for voting. all these folks got adhar cards. we were sleeping. fifty madrasa teachers come fifteen return and thirty five get settled with many wives ! Hitler Didi won all the border districts . we may not be surprised if Mamata chooses a Muslim as a deputy CM. BJP not projecting Shubhendru as CM candidate and spreading news about Sourabh Ganguli and Mithun Chakravarthy was not good. Giving prominence to TMC defectors and ignoring eligible loyal workers at some places kept many hindus stay home. West Bengal is now play ground for jihadis
* please read in Assam Bangla Muslim Badruddin Ajmal winning 21 seats...not as typo erro WB State....
Hari Om ji, it should be noted that the BJP does not have cadres at grass root level of its own. Most of it leaders are from the TMC/Congress-I /Commies too who won on their own images and in their self fiefdoms!! BJP missed winning the State due to its CM less face while campaigning and at whims and fancies of Modi-Shah.
Didi versus Modi campaign was too horrible. Didi all through have had big plaster bandage on her leg and soon after the poll results poured in at 5.30pm she removed it and walked a furlong and delivered a victory speech !!!! BJP failed to polarize Hindu votes by little percentage points advertising on PMs central Govt schemes.
In Assam it was Hemanth's single line "Ajmal CM or BJP CM" clicked.
It is scary that in WB State Bangla Muslim lead by Badruddin Ajmal winning 21 seats! The then Jana Sangh now BJP did not even win that many seats before 1985 elections! This country honored Italian Antonio Maino/ Sonia and gave her victories and two UPA govts! Sikhs in-spite of 1984 genocide by Congress-I goons still prefer Cong-I in Punjab voted twice also and vote for AAP in Delhi!!
Had indira or Rajiv lived longer they would have sent Indian Army to polling stations to conduct elections to prevent Mamata's goons attacking opposition party workers as they did it in Assam in 1985/1990! BJP failed to prevent post election results violence knowing full well that Mamata had already warned her State people/voters that this CRPF will leave WB state after the polls!! It is possible that we may have to take Visas to go to her State at a future date. Uddhav Thackeray will follow her suit!
Election results in WB state promises a BJP Govt during the next round elections because from three in 2016 to 121 in 2019 LS elections status and 78 in 2021.
BJP's sabka saath sabka vikas sabka vishwas is akin to Garibi Hatao and 60 years of planned poverty under the then Planning Commissions! Uniting 138 crore Indians including five crores anti-nationals crossed over to our country is beyond the capacity Modi-Shah duo's arrogance and adamant attitude. Under the duo experience/talents are not required just servile attitude is preferred with mesmerizing PPT slides in the Laptops.
What the author stated is a repetition of what is stated by Tagore, Ambedkar and Vivekanand. Sab Ka Saath Sab Ka viswas doesn’t apply to an ideology which treats religion above nationalism. Even if Modi declares india as Islamic nation he will not get minority votes. It is time to revise NRC and throw out east bongo Hindus and Muslims into Bangladesh.These east bongo Hindus never learnt a lesson after being massacred in 1932, 1947 and 1971.
Modi while chanting Shree Ram, never understood essence of Ramayana. Why did Sage Vashistha and Vishwamitra who were knowing all mantras and can shoot any weapon had to take help of Rama to fight rakhasas? Why didn’t Vashista and Vishwamitra teach Rama Sab Ka saath Sab Ka Vishwas ideology, and trained him in warfare instead of preaching morals. Unfortunately Hindus have forgotten Ramayana and Mahabharata the foundations for Hindu civilisation.
BJP is a fool living in dreaming to unite & convert Muslims