BJP Plans Year-End Organisational Blitz in Bengal After Modi Visit

With Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent visit to West Bengal having sharpened the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) campaign pitch ahead of the next Assembly elections, the party's national leadership is now preparing for a series of back-to-back visits to the state towards the end of the year, signalling an intensified organisational push rather than public mobilisation.

According to BJP sources, the party's newly appointed national working president, Nitin Nabin, is likely to visit Bengal first, followed by union Home Minister Amit Shah.

However, keeping in mind the year-end festive atmosphere, neither leader is expected to address public rallies or participate in open programmes.

Their engagements are likely to remain confined to closed-door organisational meetings.

Amit Shah's Bengal visit is tentatively scheduled for December 30 and 31. Party sources said the union Home minister is expected to arrive in Kolkata late on the night of December 29 from Assam.

Over the next two days, Shah is likely to hold multiple organisational meetings of varying scales. These will include interactions with the state BJP's top leadership as well as central observers in charge of West Bengal.

If required, representatives from lower organisational tiers may also be called in for comparatively larger meetings.

Sources indicated that in the prevailing atmosphere surrounding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, Shah may deliver specific messages to party workers on how to respond and act on the ground.

There could also be guidance on organisational initiatives aimed at accelerating the implementation and outreach of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

However, the exact number of meetings, their venues and timings are yet to be finalised. As a result, the state BJP has not made any official announcement regarding Shah's itinerary.

Before Shah's visit, Nitin Nabin may travel to the state in connection with a key organisational programme scheduled for December 25 at the National Library in Kolkata.

On that day, the current state leadership will hold a meeting with senior and veteran party leaders who presently do not hold any organisational posts or responsibilities.

Central observers are expected to be present at the meeting, and BJP sources said Nabin's presence is also likely.

The December 25 programme, coinciding with former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's birth anniversary, is aimed at bringing back into active politics those leaders who held important state or district-level positions during the tenures of former state BJP presidents Tapan Sikdar and Dilip Ghosh, or had contested Assembly elections, but are currently without formal roles despite being organisationally active.

The party leadership sees their return to the field as crucial in the run-up to the Assembly elections.

Designed in the spirit of reconciliation and reunification, the programme will begin with a collective lunch, followed by the screening of a 20-minute documentary on Atal Bihari Vajpayee's life and work.

Organisational discussions are scheduled to take place between 2 pm and 4 pm. Central observer Sunil Bansal and state BJP president Shamik Bhattacharya are expected to deliver the main addresses.

However, if Nitin Nabin attends, he is likely to be the principal speaker.

Together, the visits and meetings underscore the BJP's strategy of strengthening its organisational base in West Bengal after Modi's visit, as the party gears up for the crucial Assembly battle ahead.