Need shrewd, clever moves to defeat BJP in 2024: Sena mouthpiece

It also said that ‘old dilapidated houses’ among the group of opposition parties need to be ‘refurbished’ and given a ‘new look’ in order to win the faith of the people.

The Shiv Sena said on Monday opposition parties would have to make ‘shrewd and clever’ moves if they want to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. It cited the BJP’s defeat in West Bengal and Maharashtra as examples to stress that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah can be defeated in the electoral battlefield.

DMK leader Tiruchi Siva, Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge, NCP leader Sharad Pawar and Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut after an all-party meeting. (Arvind Yadav/ Hindustan Times)

In an editorial on party’s mouthpiece Saamana, the Shiv Sena, however, said that the opposition parties would have to win the trust of the people first and project themselves as a viable alternative to the BJP for them to win in the next Lok Sabha elections. The editorial also commented that it would be wrong to assume that the 19 opposition parties which convened last week at Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s residence would be able to challenge the BJP.

It also said that ‘old dilapidated houses’ among the group of opposition parties need to be ‘refurbished’ and given a ‘new look’ in order to win the faith of the people. “The opposition's unity should not be on a weak foundation. Unless these dilapidated houses are repaired and given a new look, the other side won't face shocks of unity,” the editorial said.

The Shiv Sena called for a ‘definite action plan’ and a ‘strong will to fight’. The editorial pointed out that despite PM Modi holding “19 rallies in Bengal” the BJP could not defeat the Trinamool Congress in the elections held earlier this year. It also said that the BJP faced a similar fate in Maharashtra. “Two years ago, the prestige of Raj Bhavan in Maharashtra was put at stake, but the BJP couldn't form a government in the state. West Bengal and Maharashtra showed that the BJP can be defeated in the election battlefield and on the political chessboard,” it said. It also said that the BJP toppled elected governments in Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka and only has legitimate governments in Assam and Uttar Pradesh.

In the editorial, the party also took a jibe at the Jan Ashirwad Yatra being undertaken by the newly inducted Union ministers and said that it was a tool to ‘hypnotise’ the people again. “The Union ministers during the yatras are abusing opposition parties. Most of these ministers were outsiders in the BJP and dedicated BJP workers were participating in these yatras like fools,” the editorial said.