Amit Shah’s ‘total politics’ pays off again

NEW DELHI: Congress strongman Rajendra Singh was considered unbeatable on his home turf of Bermo in Jharkhand. Having built on the political base of stalwarts like Bindeshwari Dubey, Singh was seen as a formidable contender and BJP saw Bermo as nothing more than a token fight.

That changed when Amit Shah turned his attention to the Jharkhand campaign. On one of his many tours, the BJP chief administered a stiff "pep talk" to the local unit urging that Bermo was "doable" if the party gave it a serious thought.

Shah followed up his motivational lecture on a chopper ride by seeking regular updates. On Tuesday, BJP's Yogeshwar Mahato prevailed over Singh by a rather respectable margin of over Rs 6,000 votes.

Shah was also instrumental in fielding Louis Marandi in Dumka, the stronghold of JMM chieftain Shibu Soren. Few gave Marandi much of a chance against Hemant Soren but Shah, architect of Smriti Irani's spirited fi ght against Rahul Gandhi in Amethi, disagreed and told party general secretary incharge Bhupendra Yadav to ensure that Marandi got all help The BJP chief, a believer in 'total politics', seems to have been on the ball with the results indicating that taking marginal seats casually or giving up on tougher seats may have cost the party heavily. As it turned out, Shah's methods ensured BJP crossed the half way mark.

Shah was personally involved in the selection of BJP candidates who trumped two other heavyweights — former CM Babulal Marandi who lost at both the places he contested from and the Congress state chief. Shah who spearheaded BJP's remarkable sweep of UP in the LS elections as well as victories in Maharashtra and Haryana, is an ardent believer in Modi's popularity and tries to maximize returns on his "principal asset" by running a remorselessly efficient campaign.

Like in Haryana, he put an end to the entrenched practice of tickets being given because of reputations of stalwarts or factional considerations. The enforcement of "winnability criterion" alone is considered to have boosted party's candidates and ensured that party did not snatch defeat from the jaws of victory yet again. In J&K, the audacious 'Mission 44' helped in galvanising the party cadre, resulting in a record tally. BJP is just a few seats adrift of PDP.

The wins set the stage of a much anticipated contest between BJP and AAP in the Delhi assembly election due early next year and state polls in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.