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Lok Sabha elections 2019| BJP launches ad campaign to highlight ‘chaos’ in Opposition
The animated video spots were released by the BJP’s official Twitter handle and by senior leaders including Union finance minister Arun Jaitley and railway minister Piyush Goyal.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday launched a series of animated video advertisements aimed at highlighting the “chaos” in the Opposition camp while stepping up the pressure on rival parties who demanded proof of the February air strike in Pakistan’s Balakot.
The animated video spots were released by the BJP’s official Twitter handle and by senior leaders including Union finance minister Arun Jaitley and railway minister Piyush Goyal.
The advertisements seek to draw analogies from cricket, chess, tug-of-war, kabaddi and other sports to show the “confusion” and differences among opposition parties.
Almost all the videos prominently depict Prime Minister Narendra Modi as single-handedly taking on opposition leaders on various issues, including corruption and the fight against terror. Some of these video spots also show former PM Manmohan Singh taking a “soft line” whenever terror attacks happened in the past.
The present government has often drawn a contrast between the approach of the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government on matters of national security and the “firm policies” of the Narendra Modi government.
“We have tried to showcase how Prime Minister Narendra Modi has a zero-tolerance approach towards terrorism, and how he accords the highest priority to national security issues. While the present government has a clear policy towards several issues, the Opposition remains a confused lot. It went as far as seeking proof of Balakot air strike when even Pakistan acknowledged it,” said a senior BJP functionary.
The leader added that the videos are in line with the party’s campaign theme, launched on April 7, to ask the voters to select Prime Minister’s “cohesive and tested” government against what the party describes as “chaos and mahamilawat” (adulteration) offered by the Opposition.
In one cricket-based animated clip, Modi has been shown as hitting a six to win the match, while opposition leaders are shown questioning the empire on his decision and demanding “proof”.
Tagging the video in his tweet, Jaitley said, “Which Indian asks for proof of India’s victory? Those asking for proof would be defeated again and the Modi government would come again.”
In another video, Modi is shown taking on a group of opposition leaders in a game of Kabbadi and emerging victorious.
Talking about these videos, the BJP’s information technology (IT) cell head Amit Malviya said, “The idea was to communicate the party’s message to the electorate in a manner they will relate to and find interesting.”
Modi has been at the centre of the party’s campaign for regaining power in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections with the tag line “Phir ek bar, Modi sarkar” (Modi government, once again). The seven-phase elections began on April 11 and voting will continue through May 19, followed by counting of votes for all 543 seats on May 23. The third phase of polling is scheduled for April 23.
