Give me 60 months to bring about the desired change in the country.” The way the BJP with Narendra Modi at the apex of its poll campaign and as Prime Ministerial candidate won convincingly in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh as well as coming close in the race for power in New Delhi, it has quite naturally encouraged the leadership in the North East States for a positive outcome. Truly, except Assam where it has 4 MPs, it is yet to have any representative in the Parliament from the 6 other States of Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland. 

Considered against this backdrop, ground work for building up and strengthening the organizational base has been given priority in these States. Kabindra Purkayastha, MP and a founding father of the party in the North East said to Eastern Panorama, “An action plan for the region has been prepared to give a definite direction to take the message of the party to the ground level” and added to say “NaMo factor is definitely going to impact even the Christian States looking at the trend in favour of the BJP.” 

In fact, a lot of optimism has been generated in the rank and file of the party, sensing the mood of the people who want ‘change.’ All the poll analysis in the aftermath of the last Assembly results has brought out the deep anger and resentment of people in general against the “misgovernance, rampant corruption, scams and unchecked price-rise” under the Dr. Manmohan Singh led UPA II Government. 

Buoyed up by people’s rejection of the Congress party in the States which went to Assembly polls last December, Assam BJP President, Sarbanand Sonowal, said that it was the end of the ‘most corrupt era in governance.’ People would vote for BJP in order to free the country from Congress and corruption. Narendra Modi, as he said, has become a symbol of development and good governance. Even Assam Minister of Cooperative, Siddique Ahmed, has gone on record to emulate Gujarat for dairy development in the State. The movement started by Modi will have its culmination in the Lok Sabha elections as well. Bijoya Chakraborty, MP, scoffed at the Chief Minister of Assam Tarun Gogoi, for his traditional ‘Mayang Magic’ to counter Modi’s juggernaut which only exposed the slippery ground on which Congress stands and an expression of frustration. She was confident of more seats in Assam. 

In Manipur, the party is upbeat as BJP national executive member Shantikumar Sharma said many politicalheavyweights joining the party indicate that it will provide greener political pastures. Though BJP is yet to open its account in the Lok Sabha elections in Manipur, State leaders are confident of winning both the inner and outer Manipur Parliamentary seats. State BJP Secretary (media) Laimayum Basanta Sharma also expressed his confidence of winning both the seats. It is to be noted that BJP opened its account in the 60 member Manipur Assembly from the Yaiskul constituency in Imphal in 1995.

The scenario is not different in Meghalaya where the party’s support to P A Sangma, former Lok Sabha Speaker and the Chief of the National People’s Party (NPP) during his bid for the post of President of India is expected to create enough space for it to tilt the results in the State. P A Sangma is an influential tribal and Christian leader of the North East with a clean image besides being a trusted politician. His daughter, Agatha K Sangma, former MP and central minister, and two sons, Conrad Sangma, former leader of the opposition in the Assembly and James, MLA, wield considerable influence in the politics of the State. Though the party is yet to enter the Assembly or Parliament, if it can gain the support of P A Sangma, the State leadership expects to win the seat now being held by Congress.

BJP is also looking for allies in Mizoram, another Christian State, where it has been staking its claim since the 1993 Assembly elections. It had fielded 8 candidates in the south east belts of the State where in its debut fray it was in a close race to Congress, leaving MNF in third place. During the last Assembly elections, it set up candidates for 13 seats but drew a blank. But, it has no doubt made a space for itself in the State and if the anti Congress forces unite and fight, BJP can expect to test its fortunes in the Parliamentary election as well the in future, if not now.

In Nagaland too, the BJP leadership hopes to find alliances to forge with for the only MP seat now being held by theNagaland People’s Front. In Nagaland, the focus of the BJP State unit is to gear up the organization for the coming Lok Sabha elections. James Vizo, general secretary and spokesman, BJP Nagaland, said that the leaders and workers enthused by the success of the party in the Assembly elections are now for preparedness and strategies to face the 2014 Lok Sabha election. The Nagaland BJP State unit under the leadership Dr. Chuba Ao is laying stress on organizational preparedness, booth committees, sammelans, rallies, alliances with political parties, status of the constituencies and candidate selection process and logistic support. 

The BJP has earned the confidence of Christians in Goa earlier. The same formula can be applied with regional variation in the Northeastern States to elucidate the support of the Christian-dominated Northeastern States

Mahila Morcha president Rosy Yanthan has enough cause to find space for BJP in the State. She reminds that during the last Assembly elections, the party fielded one female candidate, Rakhila Laklumong from ENPO area of Tuensang Sadar II seat, who was the lone woman candidate and won. She said her party would fight for 33% reservation for women in local bodies. A shot in the arm of BJP was the joining of Former President of the Nagaland unit of the Samata Party N Hotongse Sangtam. He asserted that the terming of BJP as ‘Hindu-oriented’ is baseless. He reminded that during the leadership of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the NDA Government had sanctioned more than Rs.1000 crores to Nagaland for development and economic uplift. 

In order to further strengthen its base, the party has scripted a pre-poll pact with Naga People’s Front (NPF) in Nagaland and is also trying to strike a seat sharing balance with Sangma’s NPP in Meghalaya. The region has 25 Lok Sabha seats and a workable sharing formula with the regional satraps of the region can strengthen the BJP-led NDA. 

BJP might get a shot in its arm if the Northeast Regional Political Front (NRPF), a conglomerate of 10 regional parties of the region, with Neiphiu Rio, Chief Minister of Nagaland as convener, forges an alliance with NDA. The regional parties coming under the umbrella of NRPF include AGP, Nagaland People’s Front, United Democratic Party, Hill State Democratic Party of Meghalaya, Manipur People’s Party, Manipur State Congress Party, Manipur Democratic People’s Front, People’s Party of Arunchal Pradesh, Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura and Mizo National Front. Purno A Sangma, the NPP national president, is all keen to support NDA. 

Arunachal Pradesh with 2 MP seats held by Congress is another State where BJP has built up its organization and during the NDA regime, 3 Assembly seats had gone to its kitty. BJP Arunachal Pradesh president Tai Tagak expressed his confidence that under the charismatic leadership of Narendra Modi, BJP would be able to make deeper inroads in the State towards ensuring a win in the Parliamentary elections.   

BJP national general secretary Tapir Gao said “The victories in the Assembly elections are signs of days to come.” These feats achieved in four States shall be repeated in the North East States sooner than later, Gao hoped. Former Member of Parliament Kiren Rijiju who is also a BJP National Executive member is of the opinion that there is a new wave of mood for change which is gripping every Indian. “Under the leadership of Narendra Modi a new India will emerge and the country will witness massive development in the years to come,” said the former MP. 

If the elections of the State assemblies of these five States are a precursor to the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the elections of these three Northeastern States of Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya, further pointed out Tapir Gao, could be a trendsetter for these Assembly elections.

In fact, a lot of optimism has been generated in the rank and file of the party, sensing the mood of the people who want ‘change.’

However, the going seems tough in Tripura where both the seats of Lok Sabha are held by the CPM. The BJP has been struggling hard to find a footing in the lone red - bastion of the country and the North East. But, as Kabindra Purkayastha said, the tide can be turned in the State while looking at the nationwide cry for change. Moreover, the NaMo factor can hardly be overlooked. 

For building up the base of the party in the North East, the credit must go to the grass root workers of BJP like the late Banshi Lal Soni, who, in the 80s undertook strenuous efforts to make inroads into States like Nagaland and introduced BJP in that Christian-dominated State. Soni, then, could get two Naga leaders to contest elections on the party symbol and ticket. Since then much water has flown down the hills of Nagaland which saw the BJP as a coalition partner for a short duration in the State.

 The BJP has earned the confidence of Christians in Goa earlier. The same formula can be applied with regional variations in the Northeastern States to elucidate the support of the Christian-dominated Northeastern States keeping in view the 2014 grand finale of the electoral battle, commented a senior most journalist.

Jyoti Lal Chowdhury