Southern Focus: PM Modi’s Attempt to Transcend North-South Divide
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been making deliberate efforts to bridge the North-South divide in India, with a particular focus on the southern states. As the 2024 elections approach, PM Modi’s objective goes beyond winning seats; it aims to change the southern narrative for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and enhance his own persona.
Historically, the BJP has struggled to gain a foothold in southern states where regional parties and linguistic identities have dominated. Even in Karnataka, the only southern state where the BJP has had some success, regional leaders have exerted significant influence within the party. Out of the 131 Lok Sabha seats in the southern region, the BJP won only 29 in 2019, with the majority coming from Karnataka and Telangana.
To overcome this challenge, PM Modi has been carefully curating and calibrating his visits to the South, adopting state-specific strategies. He has embraced southern cultures and made symbolic gestures like visiting temples in traditional local attire, participating in roadshows, and even snorkeling in Lakshadweep. The goal is to demonstrate the BJP’s commitment to the region and make it more relevant, both in terms of seats and vote shares.
In states like Tamil Nadu and Kerala, where the BJP has had limited appeal, PM Modi aims to transform the optics of Dravidian politics. Despite losing the AIADMK as an ally in Tamil Nadu, the BJP continues to support its local leader and assert its ideological identity. There is speculation that PM Modi may even contest from Tamil Nadu’s Ramanathapuram seat, emphasizing the party’s commitment to the state.
In Kerala, the BJP is targeting seats like Thrissur, Pathanamthitta, and Thiruvananthapuram, where it gained a significant vote share in 2019. The party aims to break into the Left versus Congress battleground and has been reaching out to women voters during PM Modi’s visits. Similarly, in Telangana, the BJP is focused on building on its recent gains and carrying the momentum into the Lok Sabha polls.
In Andhra Pradesh, the BJP is open to alliances or understandings with other parties as it seeks to overcome its existing irrelevance in electoral politics. The party is also maintaining its stronghold in Karnataka by forming an alliance with the Janata Dal (Secular), representing a union of dominant forces in the state.
While the BJP may have already reached its maximum potential in Karnataka, its southern push is not solely about adding numbers. It aims to change the narrative and perception of the party in the region. The 2024 elections will be a litmus test for PM Modi and the BJP to see if they can successfully breach their final frontier and transcend the North-South divide.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author.
Disclaimer: Only the headline and content of this report may have been reworked by Newsearay, staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed. The Article was originally published on Source link
