Prime%20Minister%20Narendra%20Modi%u2019s%20visits%20and%20the%20BJP%u2019s%20Rath%20Yatra%20may%20seem%20like%20the%20final%20push%20before%20the%20Election%20Commission%20announces%20the%20dates%20for%20West%20Bengal%20assembly%20polls%20sometime%20in%20April-May.%3Cbr%3EBut%20ever%20since%20the%20party%20exhibited%20a%20strong%20intent%20in%20wresting%20the%20state%20from%20the%20Trinamool%20Congress%2C%20it%20has%20worked%20on%20a%20systematic%20plan.

That%20has%20seen%20the%20exodus%20of%20old%20hands%20first%20from%20the%20Left%20and%20later%20from%20the%20Trinamool%20to%20the%20BJP%20since%202018%2C%20and%20later%20stunning%20victory%20over%2018%20of%20the%2042%20Lok%20Sabha%20seats%20in%202019.

Since%20then%2C%20Home%20Minister%20Amit%20Shah%20has%20led%20a%20band%20of%20BJP%20leaders%20to%20make%20repeated%20forays%20into%20the%20interiors%20of%20Bengal%2C%20seeking%20to%20enlarge%20the%20faultiness%20of%20the%20Trinamool%u2019s%20ten-year%20rule%2C%20following%20the%20rise%20of%20%u201Cbhaipo%u201D%20Abhishek%20Banerjee%2C%20nephew%20of%20Mamata%2C%20as%20the%20powerful%20power%20behind%20her%20throne.

%3Cstrong%3EAlso%20read%3A%20%3C/strong%3E%3Ca%20target%3D%22_blank%22%20rel%3D%22noopener%20noreferrer%22%20href%3D%22https%3A//opoyi.com/she-will-be-left-alone-amit-shahs-stinging-attack-on-mamata-banerjee%22%3E%3Cstrong%3E%27She%20will%20be%20left%20alone%27%3A%20Amit%20Shah%27s%20stinging%20attack%20on%20Mamata%20Banerjee%3C/strong%3E%3C/a%3E

However%2C%20Mamata%u2019s%20worst%20fears%20are%20not%20just%20desertion%20of%20senior%20leaders%20from%20her%20party%20to%20the%20BJP.%20Attempts%20to%20stitch%20a%20%u201Csecular%u201D%20alliance%20consisting%20of%20the%20Congress%20and%20the%20Left%20and%20a%20fledging%20Indian%20Secular%20Front%20%28ISF%29%2C%20which%20is%20led%20by%20Bengal%u2019s%20most%20prominent%20cleric%20Abbas%20Siddiqui%20of%20Furfura%2C%20has%20been%20more%20worrisome.%26nbsp%3B

These%20plans%20if%20they%20fructify%20may%20snatch%20away%20Muslim%20votes%20that%20are%20still%20solidly%20behind%20Mamata%20in%20the%20wake%20of%20the%20BJP%u2019s%20expansion.%20But%20they%20may%20disintegrate%20if%20an%20alternative%20to%20the%20Trinamool%20and%20the%20BJP%20can%20emerge%20before%20the%20elections.%26nbsp%3B

Of%20course%2C%20a%20spanner%20in%20the%20works%20is%20Abbas%u2019%20refusal%20so%20far%20to%20commit%20to%20the%20Congress%u2019%20insistence%20on%20not%20including%20Asaduddin%20Owaisi%u2019s%20All%20India%20Majlis-e-Ittehadul%20Muslimeen%20%28AIMIM%29%2C%20which%20is%20also%20in%20talks%20with%20the%20ISF.

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%3Cstrong%3EAlso%20read%3A%20%3C/strong%3E%3Ca%20target%3D%22_blank%22%20rel%3D%22noopener%20noreferrer%22%20href%3D%22https%3A//opoyi.com/mamata-banerjee-depriving-farmers-of-pm-kisan-scheme-benefits-was-injustice-jp-nadda%22%3E%3Cstrong%3EMamata%20Banerjee%20depriving%20farmers%20of%20PM%20Kisan%20Scheme%20benefits%20was%20injustice%3A%20JP%20Nadda%3C/strong%3E%3C/a%3E

The%20BJP%20says%20it%20is%20least%20worried%20by%20the%20moves%20for%20a%20%u201Csecular%u201D%20front%20against%20the%20Trinamool.%20It%20thinks%20that%2C%20in%20any%20case%2C%20the%20Muslim%20voters%2C%20who%20are%20disenchanted%20with%20Mamata%2C%20won%u2019t%20vote%20for%20it.%20But%20some%20BJP%20insiders%20admit%20a%20split%20in%20anti-Mamata%20votes%20may%20not%20benefit%20their%20party%20though%20the%20overall%20mood%20among%20a%20major%20chunk%20of%20voters%20is%20in%20its%20favour.

Aides%20of%20Mamata%20like%20poll%20specialist%20Prashant%20Kishor%20have%20claimed%20in%20interviews%20that%20the%20BJP%20cannot%20easily%20dislodge%20the%20Trinamool%20because%20of%20the%20Muslim%20voters%20who%20are%20a%20big%20factor%20in%20more%20than%2080%20of%20the%20294%20assembly%20segments%20in%20Bengal.

As%20for%20the%20Bengal%20Hindu%20vote%2C%20the%20BJP%20would%20have%20to%20compete%20hard%20with%20Mamata%20and%20try%20to%20achieve%20a%20higher%20strike%20than%20hitherto%20it%20has%20shown%20in%20other%20states.%20That%20is%20not%20easily%20possible%20in%20nine%20Muslim-influenced%20districts%20including%2024%20North%20Parganas%2C%20Hooghly%2C%20Nadia%2C%20Murshidabad%2C%20South%2024%20Parganas%2C%20Paschim%20Bardhaman%2C%20Paschim%20Medinipur%2C%20Purba%20Medinipur%20and%20Howrah%2C%20according%20to%20Kishor.

Kishor%2C%20who%20worked%20for%20Modi%20in%202014%2C%20admits%20that%20the%20PM-led%20campaign%20may%20be%20driven%20by%20his%20appeal%20as%20the%20harbinger%20of%20better%20governance%20compared%20to%20Mamata%u2019s.%20But%20Mamata%20is%20no%20push-over.%20She%20has%20been%20steadily%20infusing%20new%20blood%20among%20its%20ranks%2C%20which%20is%20the%20reason%20why%20many%20seniors%20and%20old%20faces%20have%20been%20forced%20to%20shift%20to%20the%20BJP%2C%26nbsp%3Bhe%20says.

In%20West%20Bengal%2C%2023%20sitting%20MLAs%20and%20former%20legislators%20have%20joined%20the%20BJP%20since%202019.%20They%20include%20at%20least%20two%20former%20ministers%20leaders%20%3Ca%20href%3D%22Suvendu%20Adhikari%20to%20Rajib%20Banerjee%2C%20list%20of%20leaders%20who%20quit%20Trinamool%20recently%22%3E%3Cstrong%3ESuvendu%20Adhikari%20and%20Rajib%20Banerjee%3C/strong%3E%3C/a%3E.

Adhikari%20was%20a%20big%20catch%20for%20the%20BJP%20because%20he%20has%20had%20sway%20over%20vast%20South%20Bengal%2C%20a%20stronghold%20of%20the%20Trinamool%2C%20as%20Mamata%u2019s%20chief%20lieutenant.%20The%20BJP%27s%20growth%20has%20been%20phenomenal%20in%20North%20Bengal.%20Now%2C%20it%20is%20moving%20into%20South%20Bengal%20too%20because%20of%20leaders%20like%20Adhikari%20on%20its%20side.%20Rattled%20by%20his%20departure%2C%20Mamata%20has%20pledged%20to%20contest%20from%20his%20home%20ground%20of%20Nandigram%20in%20addition%20to%20her%20seat%20in%20Kolkata.

Right%20now%2C%20it%20is%20on%20the%20streets%20of%20numerous%20towns%20of%20Bengal%20where%20the%20BJP%20and%20the%20Trinamool%20are%20flexing%20their%20muscles.%26nbsp%3B

The%20BJP%20has%20launched%20the%20mega%20Yatra%20in%20five%20different%20directions%2C%20covering%20all%20the%20294%20constituencies.%20The%20Trinamool%20Congress%20is%20also%20going%20ahead%20with%20a%20counter-rally%20by%20its%20workers%20on%2010%2C000%20motorcycles%20and%20tableaus.%20The%20BJP%20is%20wooing%20all%20sections%20of%20voters%2C%20be%20it%20the%20youth%20with%20aspirations%2C%20ordinary%20citizens%20%22fed%20up%22%20with%20TMC%27s%20%22violent%20ways%22%20and%20die-hard%20voters%20who%20have%20committed%20to%20the%20BJP.%20If%20the%20BJP%u2019s%20rally%20is%20called%20%u201CParibortan%20Yatra%u201D%20%28a%20rally%20for%20change%29%2C%20the%20TMC%u2019s%20bike%20rally%20is%20named%20as%20%u201CJana-samarthan%20Yatra%27%20%28journey%20for%20mass%20support%29.

However%2C%20a%20lot%20of%20water%20has%20flown%20down%20the%20Hooghly.%20In%202018%2C%20the%20Supreme%20Court%20had%20turned%20down%20the%20BJP%u2019s%20plea%20against%20the%20Mamata%20administration%u2019s%20refusal%20to%20allow%20the%20yatra%2C%20saying%20that%20%u201Capprehension%20%28about%20disturbance%20to%20the%20communal%20harmony%29%20expressed%20by%20the%20state%20government%20are%20not%20unfounded.%u201D%20This%20time%2C%20Mamata%u2019s%20strategy%20is%20to%20avoid%20a%20blanket%20ban%20on%20BJP%u2019s%20yatra.%20She%20has%20ensured%20that%20either%20the%20BJP%20defies%20the%20law%20or%26nbsp%3Bseeks%20permission%20from%20every%20district%20administration%20before%20it%20enters%20its%20area.

%3Cstrong%3EAlso%20read%3A%20%3C/strong%3E%3Ca%20target%3D%22_blank%22%20rel%3D%22noopener%20noreferrer%22%20href%3D%22https%3A//opoyi.com/bharatiya-jalao-party-west-bengal-chief-minister-mamata-banerjee-re-christens-bjp%22%3E%3Cstrong%3E%27Bharatiya%20Jalao%20Party%27%3A%20West%20Bengal%20CM%20Mamata%20Banerjee%20has%20a%20new%20name%20for%20BJP%3C/strong%3E%3C/a%3E

A%20major%20weapon%20in%20the%20BJP%u2019s%20arsenal%20in%20its%20campaign%2C%20of%20course%2C%20is%20directed%20at%20Mamata%u2019s%20%u201Cappeasement%20politics%u201D%20to%20keep%20her%20Muslim%20voters%20together%20and%20that%20it%20alone%20can%20defend%20West%20Bengal%27s%20majority%20against%20the%20influx%20of%20illegal%20immigrants%20in%20areas%20close%20to%20Bangladesh.%20As%20an%20indicator%20of%20things%2C%20Home%20Minister%20Amit%20Shah%20held%20multiple%20rallies%20in%20Bengal%20in%20December%20where%20he%20targeted%20her%20government%20over%20the%20law%20and%20order%20situation%20and%20vowed%20to%20end%20the%20%u201Cmisrule%u201D%20under%20her%20since%202011%20when%20she%20came%20to%20power%2C%20displacing%20the%2033-year-old%20of%20the%20Marxists%20on%20a%20similar%20plank.

There%20is%20little%20doubt%20that%20Mamata%20is%20fighting%20huge%20anti-incumbency%20issues%20with%20her%20back%20to%20the%20wall%u2014%20largely%20on%20account%20of%20several%20omissions%20and%20commissions%20of%20her%20regime%2C%20which%20has%20earned%20notoriety%20for%20political%20extortions%2C%20cut%20money%20and%20operation%20of%20%u201Csyndicates%u201D%20by%20Trinamool%20Congress%20leaders%2C%20besides%20the%20senseless%20killings%20of%20opposition%20leaders%20and%20workers.%20The%20BJP%20says%20more%20than%20130%20of%20its%20cadres%20have%20been%20killed%20by%20the%20goons%20of%20the%20ruling%20party.%3Cbr%3EMamata%20herself%20and%20her%20fledging%20party%20too%20had%20faced%20similar%20treatment%20from%20the%20CPI%28M%29%20strongmen%20when%20the%20Left%20was%20on%20the%20decline%20before%20the%202011%20polls.

%3Cstrong%3EAlso%20read%3A%20%3C/strong%3E%3Ca%20target%3D%22_blank%22%20rel%3D%22noopener%20noreferrer%22%20href%3D%22https%3A//opoyi.com/mamata-banerjees-nephew-abhishek-banerjee-dares-bjp-to-bring-anti-nepotism-law%22%3E%3Cstrong%3EMamata%20Banerjee%27s%20nephew%20Abhishek%20Banerjee%20dares%20BJP%20to%20bring%20anti-nepotism%20law%3C/strong%3E%3C/a%3E

A%20day%20ago%2C%20Mamata%20went%20on%20to%20present%20her%20government%u2019s%20budget%20%28in%20the%20absence%20of%20her%20finance%20minister%20Amit%20Mitra%20who%20has%20taken%20ill%29%20with%20a%20bouquet%20of%20promises%20in%20response%20to%20critics%20that%20her%2010%20years%20rule%20was%20one%20of%20underperformance%20in%20all%20areas.

This%20was%20after%20an%20incident%20at%20a%20rally%20in%20Kolkata.%20%u201CI%20am%20not%20God.%20How%20much%20do%20you%20want%3F%20I%20have%20given%20everything.%20Don%u2019t%20try%20to%20blackmail%20me%20before%20the%20elections.%20I%20am%20a%20street%20fighter%2C%u201D%20she%20said%2C%20visibly%20peeved%20when%20some%20women%20from%20the%20audience%26nbsp%3Bvoiced%20some%20demands.%20Never%20has%20the%20anti-incumbency%20issues%20hit%20her%20harder%20than%20before.%20For%20the%20BJP%2C%20displacing%20Mamata%20is%20as%20important%20a%20task%20as%20capturing%20a%20region%20that%20was%20once%20synonymous%20with%20the%20Left%20and%20%22karma%20bhoomi%22%20of%20its%20icon%20and%20Jan%20Sangh%20visionary%20Shyma%20Prasad%20Mookherjee%2C%20who%20died%20while%20fighting%20against%20Article%20370%20in%20Jammu%20and%20Kashmir.

%26nbsp%3B

%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23MamataBanerjee%22%20data-user-id%3D%22R7mjNJNlNhBq%22%20href%3D%22/topic/mamata-banerjee%22%3E%23MamataBanerjee%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23NarendraModi%22%20data-user-id%3D%22jDp4x2dV65uK%22%20href%3D%22/topic/narendra-modi%22%3E%23NarendraModi%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23BJP%22%20data-user-id%3D%22cqfihWqpWO59%22%20href%3D%22/topic/bjp%22%3E%23BJP%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23TrinamoolCongress%22%20data-user-id%3D%22eDKwojqulCon%22%20href%3D%22/topic/trinamool-congress%22%3E%23TrinamoolCongress%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23Politics%22%20data-user-id%3D%22ODQ1kqHlUPEu%22%20href%3D%22/topic/politics%22%3E%23Politics%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23WestBengal%22%20data-user-id%3D%22sjuhHVGMq5F1%22%20href%3D%22/topic/west-bengal%22%3E%23WestBengal%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23Election%22%20data-user-id%3D%22tS56lcuz9H09%22%20href%3D%22/topic/election%22%3E%23Election%3C/a%3E%20%3Ca%20class%3D%22mention%22%20data-mention%3D%22%23India%22%20data-user-id%3D%22Bq4MmUPrXF8p%22%20href%3D%22/topic/india%22%3E%23India%3C/a%3E%26nbsp%3B