BJP's Hindutva gets Bengali makeover: PM Modi leads cultural re-evaluation

After 'Jai Maa Durga' and 'Jai Maa Kali', 'Jai Netaji' has been added to the BJP’s lexicon at the venue of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s public rally in Durgapur as the party battles to dispel its anti-Bengali image. West Bengal is scheduled to have Assembly elections next year.

The ’Netaji’ obviously referred to Subhas Chandra Bose, whose political rivalry with BJP ideologue Syama Prasad Mookerjee was legendary.

Such historic rivalry is given the pass as contemporary political reality of the state has compelled BJP to appropriate every possible symbol of Bengali native identity.

No Ram, just Durga

Substitution of 'Jai Sri Ram' by 'Jai Maa Durga' and 'Jai Maa Kali' on the BJP’s invitation card for Modi’s public rally is part of that reality.

This striking shift aimed at countering accusations of cultural alienation was conspicuous even in Modi’s speech, which he began by regionally resonating invocation-- Jai Maa Kali and Jai Maa Durga-- instead of BJP’s popular pan-Hindu slogan 'Jai Shri Ram'.

Neither Modi nor BJP state president Samik Bhattacharya invoked Ram even once in their addresses, signalling the shift in earlier strategy.

In 2021, Ram was a flashpoint

In the 2021 Assembly elections the ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogan became a flashpoint as BJP functionaries and supporters repeatedly tried to confront and irritate TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee by shouting it in front of her. Mamata refused to address a government function in the run-up to the last assembly elections after the BJP supporters raised the slogan to pester her in front of the prime minister.

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The strategy miserably failed as the TMC countered the saffron push with its brand of regional Hinduism embedded in female-centric deities. It was aligned to Bengali ethos, and was appealing to women voters who constitute around 49 per cent of the state electorates.

An attempt to rebrand the BJP’s Hindutva model to align with Bengali asmita was evident in the prime minister’s Durgapur address, and also in the reception given by the party’s state leaders.

The prime minister was greeted at the party programme with garlands of Rajanigandha and lotus flowers. Rajanigandha, a white fragrant flower, is treasured in Bengali culture.

The lotus is the BJP’s party symbol, and is highly venerated in Hinduism. Modi was also presented with two idols of Durga--- one made of clay and another of steel.

Invoking Bengali asmita

The party ensured that the symbolism was not missed. Former BJP MP Locket Chatterjee, who was moderating the programme, announced that the reception was in agreement with Bengali asmita (pride), a phrase also found mention in Modi’s address.

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“The BJP will not let any conspiracy against Bengali pride succeed. This is Modi’s guarantee,” Modi told the gathering at Durgapur Nehru Stadium.

The ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) launched an aggressive campaign against the alleged harassment and detention of Bengali-speaking migrant workers across several BJP-ruled states. The Centre's freeze of funds to West Bengal for welfare schemes is also weaponised by the TMC to project the BJP as anti-Bengal.

Modi takes on TMC

Modi tried to turn the tables on the TMC on both issues.

“Once the BJP government comes here, West Bengal will become one of the most industrially developed states. My faith in this is because of the talented youth of this state. Bengal has rivers, and seas. It had been an import-export hub for many ages. It is rich in natural resources. There are endless possibilities to join the "Make in India" initiative. But the only obstacle is the TMC government in Bengal, which stands in the way of progress. The day the TMC government falls, Bengal will run ahead at a new speed. Real change will come the day TMC falls,” the prime minister said.

The prime minister then went on to link the state’s 'underdevelopment' to the TMC’s appeasement policy and corruption.

“Think about it: in a place like Murshidabad, where riots and violence happen at the slightest provocation, and the police take sides, how can investments come?” he said, alluding to recent communal riots in the minority-dominated district.

“I know, seeing the situation in West Bengal, no industrialist would want to invest here. When they see how the syndicates operate, how TMC extorts money, threatens, and vandalizes, they leave in fear. TMC’s goon tax is blocking investment in Bengal.”

The projects worth over Rs 5,400 crore that he unveiled on Friday were showcased to counter accusation of the Centre’s alleged step-motherly attitude towards the state.

'Infiltrators' issue remains the core

The most politically and strategically significant message in Modi’s address was on the issue of recent attacks on Bengali-speaking migrant workers.

The state BJP leaders admitted in private that the drive against the so-called infiltrators put them on the backfoot as all the non-BJP parties turned their gun against it on the issue—making the political battle in the state into a contest between the BJP versus rest.

The prime minister insisted that the crackdown will continue, making amply clear that the infiltration will remain central to the BJP's campaign projecting the drive as an attempt to protect Bengali culture as well as national security.

“From the land of Maa Durga, I want to say, those who are not Indian citizens, those who have entered illegally, will be dealt with according to the Constitution of India,” he said.

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“For BJP, the identity of Bengal is paramount. But what is happening here? TMC is threatening Bengal’s unique culture for its own selfish interests. It is letting infiltrators in, giving them fake identity papers, and creating a harmful ecosystem that is damaging both the country and Bengal,” he added.

'Even genuine citizens are affected'

''Such assertions alone will not be enough for the BJP to gloss over numerous cases of harassment of genuine Indian citizens, including Hindus, for their Bengali ethnicity across India,'' said political commentator and author Amal Sarkar.

He said that the present legacy-based citizenship identification process is fraught with danger as it needed a suspect, often poor and illiterate, to produce decades old documents.

“Nothing much would change on the ground as far as dubbing of Bengali-migrants as Bangladeshis or Rohingyas in BJP-ruled states as the prime minister reiterated the bogey of infiltration, " he said. “All this is consistent with the BJP’s avowed Hindutva policy.”

The only inconsistency is the distinct 'Bengali line' the prime minister endorsed, deviating from the party’s Ram-centric Hindutva. Among the party’s top leaders, only Suvendu Adhikari raised the 'Jai Sri Ram' slogan during his address. Absence of former state president Dilip Ghosh also left the tongues wagging about the rift in the state BJP.