Anantnag-Poonch, Ladakh to figure in 60 seats
Avtar Bhat
JAMMU, Feb 20: As a run up to next year’s Parliamentary elections, Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Minority Morcha is going to start a Muslim outreach programme across the country from March 10 this year with focus on Jammu & Kashmir UT also.
According to party sources, as a part of the programme, 64 districts in 14 States and Union Territories all over country have been identified in this regard in the first phase. They included Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi, Goa, Haryana, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Ladakh, Maharashtra, Kerala and Bihar.
Sources said this has been a major policy decision of the party to woo minorities taken in its National Executive meeting held last month in which Prime Minister, Narendra Modi called for reaching out to the minority community especially the Pasmanda (backward) Muslims.
The decision was also ratified in Morcha’s National Executive meeting held at Raipur (MP) in first week of this month, sources said, adding the meeting while endorsing the decision and taking a cue from PM’s call has decided to take up pro people policies of Modi Government to every nook and corner of the country inhabited by minority community members.
Sources said in this regard, BJP has already constituted a national team and national in-charges. Now State and UT wise teams are being formed. These teams will work following the advice given by the Prime Minister for reaching out to the Muslim community.
Sources said the party has identified those places where the Muslim population is considerably high. The party identified 60 such Lok Sabha constituencies where the Muslim population is over 30 per cent, they added.
Sources said though J&K and Ladakh have six Lok Sabha constituencies but in the first phase thrust has been given to Anantnag-Rajouri -Poonch Lok Sabha and Ladakh LS constituencies.
The party will launch Samparak Abhiyan in the length and breadth of the constituency, apprise people about Modi schemes and their salient features, sources said, adding party will make door to door ‘Jansamparak’ in this regard in the length and breadth of the constituency and apprise the masses of PM Modi’s mantra , Sabka Saath, ‘Sabka Vikas and Sabka Vishwas’.
Sources said as many as 5,000 people are being identified in each of these Lok Sabha constituencies who do not belong to BJP but were benefitted by the welfare policies of the Modi Government like doctors, engineers, social workers, journalists, or businessmen.
Sources said, party believes that such people can influence others as they command both respect and influence in the society. So efforts are being made to identify such people who can communicate with the people around their lives and the society at large, sources added.
Sources said BJP Muslim Morcha will reach out to these people in all the 60 LS constituencies who could be vendors, labourers, doctors or engineers who may not be associated with politics but play influential role and can work for the betterment of the community and society.
The party is in identification of such people in the Muslim community who can be the best influencers in society communicating messages of the Government and its welfare schemes, sources said.
At the BJP National Executive meeting, Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month called upon party leaders to reach out to the minorities, including Muslims, without expecting votes, sources added.
PM Modi spoke about areas where the party needs to be strengthened ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. “PM called upon BJP workers to meet Pasmanda (backward) Muslims, Bohra community, Muslim professionals and educated Muslims without expecting votes in return,” sources said.
Modi also instructed BJP leaders to refrain from unsolicited remarks against any community, they added.
Sources said the BJP Muslim Morcha has started Working Committee meetings in States and UTs from today. In J&K the Morcha is holding the meeting at Jammu on February 22, informed its J&K president, Ranjodh Singh Nalwa.
He said the national vice president of the Morcha Ajmal Zaidi will also address the meeting and the strategy for Party’s Samparak Abhiyan will be discussed during the meeting.
When contacted Zaidi told Excelsior that Muslims no longer consider BJP as untouchable -a phobia which was created by some opposition parties over last 70 years for their vote bank policies. He said Muslims fully understand that BJP believes in justice to all and appeasement to none. While giving benefit of the various schemes launched by the Modi Government it did not make any discrimination on the basis of religion, region or caste, he added.
BJP J&K president, Ravinder Raina while confirming that Anantnag -Rajouri and Poonch Lok Sabha constituency is among the 60 constituencies identified in the country, said BJP will start a ‘Jansamparak Abhiyan’ in the constituency by giving special thrust to Modi Government’s beneficial schemes for minorities.
He said Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal has been made Incharge of constituency.
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