Q/ You were critical of the BJP after the defeat.
A/ I am a party veteran and I helmed party affairs in Bengal. I could not imagine missing an opportunity like this. It was shocking.
Q/ Did you want to run party affairs?
A/ Not at all. I told the party that I would like to return to the mainstream. But when I came back to Kolkata (after being Meghalaya governor), I was stonewalled by the current leadership.
Q/ What did you do then?
A/ I tried to work for the BJP in my private capacity. I am aggrieved that I could not give direction to the party’s campaign strategy.
Q/ Do you feel that is where things went wrong?
A/ Yes, of course. Only shouting 'Jai Shri Ram' would not serve the purpose. The state is different. The party gave slogans like 'Sonar Bangla' (golden Bengal), an idea coined by Rabindranath Tagore, to explain what it wants to do if it comes to power. But it lacked details.
Q/ But the party manifesto elaborated on that point.
A/ Common people these days do not read manifestos.
Q/ But the party had a high-voltage campaign.
A/ The party did not create a leadership rooted in the BJP ideology. It only imported people from outside. Garbage from the TMC has come and damaged the party.
Q/ But the same leadership did wonders in 2019.
A/ True, but they should not have forgotten that the 2019 elections were of and for Narendra Modi.
Q/ So Modi magic did not work this time?
A/ I am not saying that. The party could not formulate a strategy based on the Bengal elections, where Modi would not be the face. I told the party this, but found few takers.
Q/ How can the BJP turn it around?
A/ [There can be] no turnaround as of now. We are at the disposal of Mamata Banerjee, and party workers would be attacked.
For future elections, I would like to see leaders in each district. And from those leaders should come the state leadership. No high-level import is required.
