Gandhi's late entry into WB campaign defines party's piecemeal strategy: Expert

Former president of the Congress party Rahul Gandhi campaigned for the first time in West Bengal on Wednesday, when four out of the eight phases of Assembly elections have already been held. The absence of Gandhis from the campaign scene in West Bengal became a hot topic when both the BJP and TMC are fighting tooth and nail.

New Delhi: While high-voltage political campaigns of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in West Bengal have been star-studded, former Congress president Rahul Gandhi's late entry into the election campaign has raised questions on the party's poll strategy for the state.

As the TMC and the BJP have already played their trump cards for the election campaigns during the last four-phase elections in West Bengal, Gandhi campaigned for the first time in the state on Wednesday.

Gandhi addressed two public meetings, one at Goalpokhar in North Dinajpur and the other at Shivmandir Bazar Matigara in Darjeeling. This comes after elections were being held in 135 seats, almost half of the total 294 constituencies. In this context, Gandhi's visit seems more of a formality to keep away from the criticism of not focusing on West Bengal.

Throwing light on the matter, senior journalist and political analyst Rasheed Kidwai told ETV Bharat, "The Congress has a piecemeal strategy regarding the elections. For instance, they were fighting the Left in Kerala, while they are in alliance with the same party in West Bengal. So, strategically, Gandhi could not have visited West Bengal before the Kerala elections concluded."

The Congress' only goal is to get the BJP defeated in all the states where Assembly polls are underway, even if this demanded the grand old party to enter into an alliance with a third party - this implies to West Bengal as well. Though Gandhi made several remarks against the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC government during his rallies, the major focus in his speeches was on the BJP-RSS.

"In his speech, Gandhi dubbed both the TMC as well as the BJP. He said Modi is doing at the Centre what Mamata is doing in the state, even as the Congress has an outside chance of forging an alliance with the TMC in case of a fractured mandate for the Mamata-led party in West Bengal. If Mamata falls short of attaining a majority, the Congress and the other Left parties can support her in order to keep the BJP at bay," Kidwai asserted.

When asked if Gandhi's move was 'too little, too late' in terms of making an impact on the election results, Kidwai replied, "In political culture, it is the success that defines everything. If the BJP is defeated in Bengal, I don't think there would be any criticism on Rahul Gandhi."

He added, "Traditionally, the Congress has supporters in pockets of West Bengal - Malda, Raigunj and Murshidabad. I think the Congress is focusing on those seats so it can be in a position to be a part of the government."

The Congress is aware of the fact that it does not have much stake in West Bengal. That is why the Gandhis kept their focus on Kerala and Assam. They also put some efforts into Tamil Nadu where the party is very much confident of achieving an adequate number of seats. But if it happens, it will be a victory for the DMK and not for the Congress party.

In view of keeping the BJP at bay in West Bengal, the Congress does not want to split anti-BJP votes. The Congress' alliance with the Left had already faced a lot of pressure from other opposition parties who suggested that full support should be extended to Mamata in her fierce fight against the saffron party.