Janjivan Bureau
New Delhi: A microcosm of cosmopolitan culture, Chandigarh could hardly be equated with Punjab or quoted as an example of a bellwether constituency. The BJP however sees its landslide win in civic body elections as an augury of a bigger victory: the Punjab Assembly elections next year.
Chandigarh is a “stamp of approval” — proof of “popular mood” — over Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s demonetisation move that should serve as a lesson to the Opposition, the part’s national president Amit Shah said. The Congress has emerged as a “symbol of negative politics” in the country, he said.
“In elections held across different parts of the country following demonetisation, people have taught a lesson to the opposition and told it about their mood and the direction of politics. They have put a stamp of approval on the Prime Minister’s decision. BJP’s landslide win in Chandigarh is yet another instance of people reposing their faith in BJP’s development politics and PM Modi’s vision,” he said.
BJP leader Sidharth Nath Singh claimed results of all elections after November 8 — Assembly and Lok Sabha bypolls as well as the local bodies elections in Maharashtra, Gujarat and Chandigarh —were replies to those who demanded a referendum on demonetisation. Chandigarh’s results, he said, indicated the mood in the region.
“We (Akali Dal-BJP combine) are winning the Punjab elections,” he said on a day the party also faced a few embarrassing moments when one of their very own questioned the government’s latest caveat on deposits above Rs 5000.
“New caveats on depositing old notes till Dec 30 were unnecessary & will undermine people’s faith in govt assurances. A terrible last move,” BJP’s Rajya Sabha MP Swapan Das Gupta said on the social media, following it up with: “Pointing out a misstep does not in any way diminish my complete endorsement of demonitisation. Trolls can look elsewhere for sceptics”.
However, the party termed it his personal view. “The party has complete faith on the way the government is implementing the roll out. It is his personal view,” Singh said.
Buoyed by Chandigarh’ results, BJP leaders said by the time the four states—Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttrakhand, Goa— go to polls, inherent state-related election’ factors would have overtaken demonetisation’ issue.
“However difficult times the people may have faced because of demonetisation, eventually, it is the age-old community and caste based poll planks that will be the riding factors in the elections,” they said.
Banking on star campaigner Narendra Modi, the BJP leaders say he may make some big announcements when he next speaks in Lucknow on November 2. The announcements may include presenting “real facts” and “final calculations” about money collected by banks till December 30, 2016.
