The BJP took to the streets days before a Congress rally scheduled for November 1. Party president Nitin Nabin led a march through Chandni Chowk in Delhi under the slogan “Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy”. Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta also took part.
The march was an attempt to counter the Opposition's campaign against the Election Commission and turn the debate over voter lists into a political contest over who stands for democracy.
The BJP said the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls would ensure that all eligible voters were included. It accused the Congress of spreading misinformation about the exercise.
The BJP has used the same technique used by the Oppistion – to hold a march. This is BJP's manner of engagement with people and puts its view point forward. It also attempts to change perception that the party was on a defensive on the subject.
The choice of Chandni Chowk was significant. The BJP has accused the Congress and other Opposition parties of disrupting business during the festive season. Chandni Chowk, one of Delhi’s main trading centres, sees heavy business during this period. By holding its march there, the BJP sought to reach traders and establish its presence on the streets before the Congress rally.
The march came amid protests by students and Opposition parties over alleged irregularities in electoral rolls. The BJP sought to counter their allegations and defend the Election Commission’s revision exercise.
Addressing party workers before the march, Nabin said the BJP continued to take to the streets even when in power. “They struggle on the streets even when in power and raise their voices on the streets even when in the Opposition,” he said.
Nabin said democracy was secure under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He said Modi considered the country’s 1.4 billion people his family and stood by them in times of joy and sorrow.
He called the protesters anarchists and said BJP workers and Modi had served people during the Covid pandemic, while those now protesting had remained absent. Nabin also referred to the BJP’s 2011 campaign to hoist the national flag at Srinagar’s Lal Chowk. He alleged that Pakistani flags had been waved there while the government in Delhi remained silent. Today, he said, the Tricolour flew across the country, including in remote villages.
On electoral rolls, Nabin accused the Congress of opposing efforts to clean up voter lists. He said the BJP would ensure that infiltrators were removed from the rolls.
Nabin also targeted Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, accusing him of using the Constitution as a political issue without respecting its values. He warned that the Congress would suffer further electoral losses if its leaders continued to follow Gandhi’s approach.
The BJP's argument rests on presenting electoral-roll revision as a question of democratic integrity, while the Opposition has raised concerns about the fairness of the process.
The big message from the BJP chief was that Narendra Modi would return to the Red Fort after the 2029 general election, expressing confidence that the BJP would win another term.
The march is part of a wider counter offensive planned by the BJP. Similar marches will be held in state capitals under the leadership of BJP chief ministers. Nabin is scheduled to visit Uttar Pradesh to take part in another rally.
