Bengal BJP plans to project itself as a “Bengali” party by highlighting Shyama Prasad Mookerjee

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been chalking out its plans to project itself as a party of the Bengalis ahead of the 2021 Assembly polls in West Bengal. And their obvious choice is Shyama Prasad Mookerjee.

Mookerjee is the founder of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh in 1951, the precursor of the BJP. In 1977, the Bharatiya Janta Sangh merged into the Janata Party along with other parties. In 1980 general elections, the Janata Party won 31 seats, and the members were banned by its National Executive Council for being “dual members” of the RSS and the party. The former Jana Sangh members left the Janata Party and floated a new political party. The BJP thus came into existence in April 1980.

Shyama Prasad Mookerjee is a highly revered leader of the BJP. Son of Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee and Jogamaya Devi, he was president of Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha between 1943 and 1946.

Mookerjee had strongly opposed Article 370 and one of the goals of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh was abrogation of the article. The Bharatiya Jana Sangh had started a movement under him opposing special status to Kashmir. Jawaharlal Nehru was then Prime Minister, and Mookerjee was arrested and jailed. He had “died under mysterious circumstances”.

Under the backdrop of the recent move by the BJP-led government at the Centre, BJP leaders in Bengal feel that Mookerjee’s movement, dreams on abrogation of Article 370 and its realisation will make him and the BJP more relevant to the people of West Bengal now, if the context is presented before people suitably.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech addressing the nation on national television and radio two days after the abrogation of Article 370 also had mention of Shyama Prasad Mookerjee. Modi said that it was Mookerjee’s dream that had now turned into a reality.

The Bengal BJP is thus planning to project Shyama Prasad Mookerjee’s contributions and explain his role in the formation of a party that is often under attack for not being a party of the Bengalis.

This would be done through meetings and programmes all over the state. Meetings have been planned in about 12 cities – to start with, in Kolkata, Kharagpur, Bolpur, Siliguri, Midnapore, Asansol and Durgapur. Lawyers, doctors, teachers, and other intellectuals of these areas will be invited to discuss the “contributions made by Shyama Prasad Mookerjee in shaping the nation”. The initial set of programmes is expected to be completed before Durga Puja.

The BJP is hoping to organise some programmes with Dr Shyama Prasad Mookerjee Research Foundation, in order to reach out to a larger number of people.