BJP to chant growth mantra,not Ram

• Rajnath, Modi to finalise poll team
• Modi unveils a two-pronged election strategy for the party
• BJP plans outreach programme

Anita Saluja New Delhi: Readying itself for snap polls and Assembly elections in the States of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi and Mizoram, the BJP will be announcing its election team shortly. The job was entrusted to BJP President Rajnath Singh and Campaign Committee Chairman Narendra Modi at the BJP Parliamentary Board meeting on Monday.

After the intervention of RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat, BJP patriarch L K Advani has fallen in line, with none of the leaders at the meeting raising a dissent voice on the deliberations conducted by the party president. Rajnath Singh will consult all the leaders, before finalizing the election team that could eventually pave the way for Modi to become Prime Minister after the general election next year.

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who has emerged as the BJP Prime Ministerial face and "de-facto" leader of the party, has the challenge of wresting the States of Delhi and Rajasthan from the Congress, besides retaining Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, the States run by the BJP where both the Chief Ministers, Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Raman Singh, are aiming to score a hat-trick.

The BJP Campaign Committee will be entrusted with showcasing the developmental work of the BJP-ruled States and that of Vajpayee government from 1998-2004, along with exposing the failures of the UPA government, with the focus on the string of scams that hit the aam aadmi. Instead of the construction of Ram Temple, the slogan will shift to development and good governance, the twin principal planks of the party.

At the BJP Parliamentary Board meeting on Monday, leaders like Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley insisted that they should come out of the temple issue and rather concentrate on the development work of the party. It may be recalled that it was only recently that BJP General Secretary in-charge of UP Amit Shah had raised the pitch on construction of Ram temple at Ayodhya, the issue which found no takers in the party. Rajnath Singh was prompt in sidestepping the issue, saying that Amit Shah had talked about the temple issue since he was there in Ayodhya.

"The BJP is ready for snap polls," declared BJP General Secretary Ananth Kumar, after the meeting of the BJP Parliamentary Board. Soon the party will have five State Assembly elections in Rajasthan, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram, which is being viewed as the semi-finals, ahead of the finals in 2014. Considering that it is a big electoral challenge, the party has decided to prepare for it, in right earnest.

Ananth Kumar said after the election team is put in place, it will be tasked with the responsibility of preparing the publicity material, election manifesto and showcase the good governance and development agenda of Vajpayee Government between 1998-2004 and the NDA Governments in the States and contrast it with the dismal record of the UPA Government. The election team will also address other issues like using the social media network for campaign and strengthening the organisation down to the booth-level.

Modi has unveiled a two-pronged election strategy for the party. A political campaign will be unleashed, which will succeed in creating anti-Congress climate in the country. The party organisation will be geared up and prepared for the electoral challenge. From the Central and State units down to the parliamentary constituency and the booth-level, the party organisation will be mobilized.

Setting the agenda for the BJP, Modi wanted the party to take on the ruling Congress on its record of corruption, the economic crisis and price rise and its failure on all fronts. In an internal assessment, the party feels that the Congress is weighed down by pressures from the Allies and is in no position to face Parliament. Even on an issue like the Food Security, the Congress is in no position to convince its Allies to have it discussed and passed on floor of the House. The party is unable to finalise the dates for monsoon session of Parliament. As a result, the Congress may go in for early elections.

The BJP is planning its outreach programme, where its senior leaders will fan out across the country and address rallies. The saffron party expects the upcoming parliamentary elections to be largely Presidential in its format, with the two principal Prime Ministerial faces of the Congress and the BJP, Rahul Gandhi and Narendra Modi, face to face. As Modi is a consummate politician, the party senses advantage over the Congress rival, Rahul Gandhi.