As the year-end Assembly polls approach, political winds are stirring in Madhya Pradesh and Bihar, with parties embroiled in a war of words and vivid public campaigns to sway public sentiment in their favour. Key players in this high-stakes game are the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress, with each party leveraging a mix of aggressive rhetoric and calculated public moves to establish dominance.
The political turmoil was particularly palpable in Madhya Pradesh, where a face-off occurred between the ruling BJP and the main Opposition, the Congress, over unexpected posters featuring corruption charges against the state’s Chief Minister, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, and his predecessor, Kamal Nath. The identities of the poster creators remain cloaked in mystery, with both parties disavowing any involvement and attributing the act to infighting within their respective state units.
A seasoned leader of the BJP, Chouhan, and Nath, the Madhya Pradesh Congress President, are anticipated to spearhead their respective party’s campaigns in the forthcoming Assembly polls, which are projected to take place in November. The contentious “poster war” was ignited by images of Nath labelled as “corrupt Nath” and “wanted” in connection to various alleged “scams”. These posters, which surfaced in the Shahpura area, even included QR codes encouraging the public to “scan to prevent scams”.
However, the BJP was not spared from this anonymous smear campaign. Shortly after the appearance of Nath’s posters, images of Chouhan emblazoned with phrases such as “Not Shivraj, But Scam Rule” and “Shivraj’s 18 years of rampant scams and frauds” sprouted across the city, with the infamous Vyapam scam — an admission and recruitment racket — prominently highlighted.
Refuting the allegations in these posters, Nath contended that the tactics were designed to deface his reputation prior to the imminent polls. He staunchly maintained that his 47-year political career remained unmarred by any scandal and asserted, “People are a witness to my clean political life, and I don’t need any certificate from the BJP.”
On the other hand, state BJP President Vishnu Dutt Sharma dismissed his party’s association with Nath’s defamatory posters, attributing their creation to an “internal fight” within the Opposition party.
Meanwhile, Congress workers, led by former state minister P C Sharma and senior leader JP Dhanopia, initiated legal action by submitting a complaint and calling for an investigation into the identity of those behind the Nath-targeting posters. The investigation’s outcome remains to be seen.
In 2018, the Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls resulted in a hung Assembly, with the Congress claiming a slim majority. However, their coalition government collapsed in March 2020 when several MLAs quit and defected to the BJP, thus enabling the saffron party to reclaim power.
The political action wasn’t limited to Madhya Pradesh. Bihar’s capital, Patna, was also embroiled in political drama. Posters and large cut-outs named ‘mohabbat ki dukan’ (shop of love), a line borrowed from a speech by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, decorated the cityscape. These posters were aimed at countering BJP supporters’ propaganda, which mocked the opposition meet as ‘parivar bachao’ (save the family), a veiled jab at the Gandhi family.
Adding to the festive fervour, the city was also adorned with colourful posters and banners of key political figures like Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, RJD supremo Lalu Prasad, Delhi CM Kejriwal, and others.
On Friday, the opposition parties across the country convened their first joint meeting in Patna, kickstarting the political machinations for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. This meeting was graced by prominent figures from various parties, indicating the commencement of the strategic groundwork for the looming electoral battles.
In sum, as India gears up for critical Assembly polls, the political landscape is becoming increasingly charged with parties deploying a range of strategies, from poster wars to high-profile meetings, to galvanise support and gain an upper hand. These events not only set the stage for an intense election season but also highlight the tactical manoeuvres that constitute the vibrant democratic process in India.
