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Ahead of polls, BJP sets up war room in Pune, Congress likely to release first list on Sept 10
BJP plans to reach to the potential voters in all the eight constituencies through social media. From Pune, Congress city unit chief Ramesh Bagwe’s name is likely to be figured in the first list
Ahead of the upcoming assembly elections in Maharashtra, political parties are gearing up for the poll season with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) setting up a war room at the party office on Jungli Maharaj road in Pune and the Congress likely to announce a list of 60 candidates across Maharashtra by September 10.
According to senior Congress leaders, the party has decided to field most sitting members of legislative assembly (MLAs) and their names will be figured in the first list scheduled to be announced on September 10. From Pune, Congress city unit chief Ramesh Bagwe’s name is likely to be figured in the first list. Bagwe is eyeing to contest the polls from the Cantonment assembly segment, which he lost during the 2014 polls.
Meanwhile, the BJP plans to reach to the potential voters in all the eight constituencies through social media, said Madhuri Misal, city BJP unit chief. The party has decided to deploy 10 ‘social media warriors’ for each of the eight assembly segments in Pune to aggressively reach out to voters.
Misal said that the BJP’s Pune war room will be working in line with the other war rooms set up at the state and central level to galvanise cadre as well as reach out to voters. The assembly polls are likely to be held in October for which the dates will be announced within the next few days.
‘‘We have prepared teams for all the constituencies and appointed persons heading these teams. In all, 80 youths will be handling social media for the BJP in Pune. We will focus on the important decisions that the party has taken in the past five years under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis,” said Misal.
According to Misal, the war room will try and spread the word about citizen-friendly works carried out by all the eight BJP MLAs in all the constituencies.
“The accomplishments like Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) development plan, ring road, developmental works at the Pune airport, new e-buses, improvements in the slum redevelopment scheme guidelines will be talked about along with the other decisions of state and national importance,” said Misal.
The BJP has also activated WhatsApp groups for each constituency and plans to use WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to reach a wider voter base. ‘‘This will help us know the voter’s sentiments and their demands for the city,” said Misal.
The Congress, too, is not behind in reaching out to voters through social media. “The party plans to increase its connect through social media from next week onwards. Currently, there are three people in the Congress team promoting messages. The party plans to deploy eight members for each assembly segment as part of social media team,” said Ramesh Iyer, city Congress spokesperson.
Mahajanadesh yatra on Sept 14
Led by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, BJP’s ongoing Mahajanadesh yatra will reach Pune on Saturday, September 14. The yatra, according to party office-bearers, will pass through all the eight assembly segments of the city. It will enter the city from Hadapsar and will pass through its various parts.
