The government’s proposal to offer training in artificial intelligence to 10 million people over the next year; free online coaching for competitive and government exams, and a nationwide campaign to scout and train future Olympic contenders as announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Independence Day speech, outlines the outreach the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has planned to reset the narrative against the party and the government, said people aware of the details.
Multiple BJP leaders said the party’s internal surveys and feedback from the cadre underlined that the recent bypoll upsets and the growing criticism of the government on social media platforms are an immediate fallout of the 37-day students’ protest led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP).
“The party has identified some gaps in our communication and outreach that could have exacerbated the students’ unrest and created a perception that the concerns of the youth were not addressed… There will be more engagement with students and young adults,” said a BJP lawmaker, requesting anonymity.
Party admits communication gaps in handling student unrest
The party’s initial response and failure to gauge the sentiments of the protesters led by the CJP has been flagged as a mis-step by a section of leaders, who believe the party should have engaged with the protesters and students at large through its youth wing, the Yuva Morcha and the students’ wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).
To ensure the government is not blindsided by latent anger or disappointment, particularly as preparations for polls in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa have begun, the party has planned aggressive outreach targeting young adults.
“Going forward the Yuva Morcha will be more active, there will be more programmes and events to connect with the youth. We will also reach out to the younger lot in schools, who may be young, but are clued in and active on social media,” said a second senior party functionary. “Both in Bankipur and Datia we failed to counter a particular narrative, which hurt the party… We felt some issues did not merit a response, but in hindsight we should have been more forthcoming in tackling those.”
