BJP eyes an opening in North Bengal

L K Advani and Narendra Modi. Nitin Gadkari and Rajnath Singh. Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj. Rajnath Singh, Vinay Katiyar and Hema Malini. BJP leaders of North Bengal cannot remember when such a line-up of central leaders went there to campaign for their candidates. All of them arrived over the past week.

Its confidence boosted by the Darjeeling victory in the parliamentary elections, the BJP is targeting at least 12 of North Bengal’s 54 Assembly seats, including Madarihat, Kumargram, Nagrakata and Dhupguri in Jalpaiguri, Toofangunj in Cooch Behar, Habibpur in Malda and Kalchini in Darjeeling.

Modi’s visit marked his first campaign ever in the state. He addressed rallies at Madarihat, Dhupguri and Toofangunj and at each place he compared Gujarat and West Bengal to show how far his state is ahead in development. At Dhupguri, he pointed at a hospital: “Is it a hospital? It itself is dead. How can it provide treatment to those who are living? This is what you have got after 34 years of Left rule.”

One seat the BJP is confident of snagging is Madarihat. In the last parliamentary polls its candidate for Jalpaiguri, Manoj Tigga, led the winner, the CPM’s Mahendra Nath Roy. Tigga is the BJP candidate for Madarihat this time and the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha has promised him support. Of the 2 lakh voters, 20,000 are Nepalese, most of them loyal to the Gorkha cause.

Segment-wise, the BJP bagged large vote shares also in Dhupguri (25,000) and Kumargram (21,000) and in Kalchini (46,000).

“After the votes we got in the parliamentary elections and last civic elections, couples with our organisational strength in North Bengal, we hope to do well,” says Rabindra Narayan Choudhury, Jalpaiguri district BJP president.

The CPM dismisses the number of star campaigners. “Anybody can address rallies anywhere. It’s the people who will have the last word,” says Rabin Deb, CPM state secretariat member.

The BJP has been striving to increase its presence in Bengal. Its Nava Jagran Yatra, 2,000 km from Cooch Behar to Kolkata on January 30 to February 15, culminated with an address by four CMs, Advani, Nitin Gadkatri and Jaitley. The Rashtriya Ekta Yatra to Lal Chowk, Srinagar, began from Kolkata, flagged off by Gadkari.

Indian Express

Ekta yatra getting massive response: BJYM

SHIMLA: With J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah having reiterating his concern at the plan of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) to unfurl the national flag at conclusion of its Rashtriya Ekta Yatra at Srinagar's Lal Chowk on January 26, and asked them not to do so, the resolve of the organization has only gone stronger. National president Anurag Thakur claimed, "This yatra is for the honour and respect of the tricolour and will conclude after unfurling the national flag at Lal Chowk.''

The state wing of the organization is getting its members ready to embark to Srinagar to be present on Republic Day for what they termed as a historic occasion when the national president unfurls the tricolour, national general secretary BJYM and incharge of the yatra, Manoranjan Mishra said that the tremendous response being given to the yatra was an indication that people were for the unity and integrity of the country.

He said that on the fifth day the yatra started from Varanasi and reached Amethi via Jaunpur and Sultanpur and in his public meeting at Amethi, the parliamentary constituency of Congress youth icon, Rahul Gandi, the BJYM national president made it clear that the yatra will not stop and go ahead to its concluding point at Lal Chowk in Srinangar, where the tricolour will be unfurled.

The huge crowd in support of the yatra at Amethi was evident of the fact that people of the country were fed up with the so-called legacy of the Gandhi family and its days were numbered. People from the public came out to the dais and blessed Anurag and even presented him with a sword, while a 75-year-old woman handed a tricolour to him and gave him her blessings, he claimed.

Times of India, 17 Jan 2011

National Flag hosting controversy in Jammu and Kashmir by BJYM

Gadkari launches march to hoist national flag at Srinagar

BJP Leaders in Shyambazar crossing

Kolkata, Jan 12 (IANS) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Nitin Gadkari Wednesday launched the Rashtriya Ekta Yatra, or the national unity march, that will conclude Jan 26 with the hoisting of the national flag at Srinagar's historic Lal Chowk, a move opposed by the Jammu and Kashmir government.

According to the BJP, the yatra's purpose is to uphold the unity of India and bind the youth of India with Kashmir.

Anurag Thakur and Rahul Sinha in Ekata Yatra

The yatra, on a bus converted to look like a chariot used by Hindu warriors of yore, will pass through 11 states before reaching Lal Chowk, the centre of Srinagar, on Republic Day Jan 26.

Gadkari kicked off the yatra by handing over the tricolour to Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) president Anurag Thakur.

'This is very unfortunate that after 63 years of independence we need to go to Kashmir for hoisting a flag. Lakhs of Kashmiri Pandits have been evicted from Kashmir. Congress is only interested in vote bank politics,' Gadkari said after launching the yatra.

'The problem of Kashmir is because of the appeasement policies of the Congress. Why is it that this government doesn't have the courage to say no to 'azaadi' (freedom) and they have to stay in Kashmir. Kashmir is an integral part of India and it will remain so,' Gadkari said.

Anurag Thakur at Shyambazar

This 'Ekta Yatra' has drawn much attention after Kashmiri separatist leader Muhammad Yasin Malik challenged the BJP's decision to hoist the national flag at Lal Chowk.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah also asked the BJP not to hoist the national flag at Lal Chowk as this would unnecessarily 'provoke' the people of Kashmir.

(Source: Sify News)

BJP MP dares Malik on Lal Chowk flag

Kolkata, Jan 5 (IANS) Kashmiri separatist leader Muhammad Yasin Malik must clarify which flag he wants to see hoisted at Srinagar's Lal Chowk on Republic Day, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP demanded here Wednesday.

'Yasin Malik should clarify which country's flag he wants to see there. We know he wants to see the flag of Pakistan there. His dream will never be fulfilled,' BJP MP Chandan Mitra told reporters here.

While addressing a seminar in Srinagar Tuesday, Malik had challenged BJP's decision to hoist the national flag at the Lal Chowk on Republic Day.

'If the BJP intends to go ahead with its decision, we will see whose flag is hoisted at Lal Chowk,' Malik had said.

Mitra also condemned Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah for asking BJP not to hoist the national flag at Lal Chowk.

The youth wing of the BJP, Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, is scheduled to organise Rashtriya Ekta Yatra from Kolkata to Srinagar for the unity of the nation and to bind the youth of India with Kashmir

The rally will start Jan 12 from Kolkata and pass through 11 states before reaching Lal Chowk in Srinagar Jan 26. Hoisting the national flag there will mark the end of the rally.

Asked whether the BJP youth wing was trying to compete with the Youth Congress under Rahul Gandhi, Morcha national secretary Bani Tripathy said: 'We don't want any comparisons because we don't believe in any individual-oriented or family-oriented politics.

'A family runs Congress party. It's entirely their prerogative how the Youth Congress will function,' she said. (Sify News)

BJP youth wing to undertake West Bengal to Kashmir rally

Amravati, Dec 15 (PTI) The Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) will soon take out a rally from West Bengal to Jammu and Kashmir and hoist the tri-colour at Lal Chowk in Srinagar on March 26 next year to highlight the Kashmir issue and problems faced by the youth in the militant-affected state, a top functionary the BJP youth wing said today.

The rally will be undertaken under the youth wing''s ''India First'' campaign, Poonam Mahajan, National Vice- President of BJYM, who was in the city to address a meeting of BJYM. told reporters here.

Speaking at the meet, Mahajan claimed BJP will come to power at the Centre after the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.

She said the party should give 50 per cent election tickets to the youth.

The main work of political parties is to serve people, but the Congress-led Government in Maharashtra, over the last ten years, has failed to prevent farmer suicides and was ridden with corruption, Mahajan said.

http://in.news.yahoo.com/bjp-youth-wing-undertake-west-bengal-kashmir-rally-20101215-101700-174.html

SAFFRON RALLY

‘Flag march’ from Kolkata to J&K

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) on Saturday said that it would embark on a “national unity march” from Kolkata on January 12 and hoist the Tricolour in Srinagar’s Lal Chowk on the Republic Day. 

BJYM president Anurag Thakur said the march would commence on the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda. “We will hoist the Tricolour at Lal Chowk on January 26. We will take youths from all over the country in the march,” he said. 

Thakur, a BJP MP from Hamirpur in Himachal Pradesh, said the march would pass through 11 states, covering a distance of 3,066 km. 
He said 32 public meetings and 120 roadshows will be held during the march. He said BJP leaders will take part in public meetings. 
“The march will start from the birth place of Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee, and culminate in the state in which he laid down his life,” Thakur said. 
He said the march was being held in support of its demands for removing Article 370 of the Constitution that gives special status to Jammu and Kashmir and for rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandits.

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