Sources in the Trinamool said the party has begun work on the elections on a war footing.
Aiming to better its 2021 Assembly polls performance, when the party won 215 of West Bengal’s 292 seats, Trinamool Congress National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee will address over 5,000 leaders and workers on Friday and present a vision that can guide them to victory in next year’s elections.
Sources in the Trinamool said the party has begun work on the elections – expected to be held around April – on a war footing, and Banerjee will give the leaders, including MPs and MLAs, and workers a “victory mantra”.
The Diamond Harbour MP’s mantra is essentially three-pronged and focuses on these aspects: Special Intensive Revision (SIR), countering the BJP, and the way forward.
SIR
The Special Intensive Revision has emerged as an important political issue ahead of the elections and the Trinamool has set up various counters and feedback centres across the state to help voters. While the aid was focused on filling the enumeration forms initially, it is now geared towards helping those whose names have not appeared in the draft list.
The final draft will be released on February 14 and the party said there are many genuine voters who are facing challenges.
“In a bid to ensure every genuine voter has the right to vote, the party and the state machinery are working together in the same direction,” said a source.
Countering BJP
The BJP, which has cornered a significant vote share, has emerged as the clear principal opposition party in Bengal.The Trinamool, sources said, has repeatedly touted its track record of being among the only regional parties that have been able to defeat the BJP electoral juggernaut in a one-on-one contest, and a victory again next year will cement this reputation.
The BJP has been relentless in its attack on the Trinamool and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, levelling allegations of corruption, among others, and the party hopes a mega verdict will help blunt these.
In his speech at 4 pm, Abhishek Banerjee is also expected to address the questions raised by the formation of a new party by suspended Trinamool MLA Humayun Kabir. This is especially important because Kabir may eat into Muslim votes, which have been critical to the Trinamool Congress’ wins in successive elections.
The Way Forward
Having ruled West Bengal since 2011, anti-incumbency is a factor that the Trinamool is acutely aware of. Sources said the party is focused on ensuring that the achievements of the party reach every person in the state.
“This includes informing the voters about government policies that have benefited them and drawing a clear distinction between the benefits from Centre- and state-government schemes. This time, the target is to win with a record margin and increase the party’s national importance,” the source said.
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Trinamool Congress, West Bengal Assembly Elections, Abhishek Banerjee
