Early prediction for #WestBengalElections2021: Unless @BJP4India makes any major mistakes in cadidate selection & election is fair; #BJP hs distinct edge. Poor ground level organisation in South Bengal & complacency among boothlevel leaders are only weaknesses. @SandipGhose 1/n
Near zero resentment in BJP over 1st list of candidates. Very few late inductees found place. Only 4 candidates of Shuvendu. Almost all r free from major charges of extortion, corruption. Only 1 filmstar. #BJP shud follow example in future lists. #WestBengalElections2021 2/n
#TrinamoolCongress standing on weak wicket hit by a cocktail of anti-incumbency, subaltern Hindutva, eroding trust on #Mamata. Failure in law & order, dadagiri, extortion & throttling of residual democratic space aftr #Left rul killd TMC's perspects #WestBengalElections2021 3/n
Huge consolidation of SC/ST/OBC votes in BJP's favour neutralised Muslim vote factor. Also, Bengali Muslim r looking 4 options beyond #MamataBanerjee. ISF will dent in select dists. #BJP may also get Muslim votes in pockets. #Amphan had hit TMC. #WestBengalElections2021 4/n
Except in pockets, #Left votes will not increase as momentum against #Trinamool gaining traction & BJP seen as viable alternative. BJP ws gaining on negative sentiment against TMC. #Modi's huge pull can convert it into a positive momenum for BJP. #WestBengalElections2021 5n/n
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BJP's failure in winning 'intellectual' debate became most apparent in #CAA. Reason lies with party. I worked in this space 4 too long to kno how long term agendas are set. Why intellectualism is equated to #Left leaning among a section in #WestBangal & #India. 1/n
I have been consistent in saying that #CAA is a major correction to the historic neglect to human tragedies from sustained flight of #Hindu & other minority from #EastPakistan/#Bangladesh. It's unfinished job of #Partition. 2/n
#Secularism will be threatened only when #India wil institutionally discriminate between two sets of citizens, as it happened in #Pakistan & #Bangladesh not by virtue of giving citizenship 2 d discriminated/persecuted in this 2 countries born out of discriminatory principles. 3/n
The consolidation of anti-#India protests, fuelled by brutal killing of an engineering student, over a silly water share agreement and now a clash between BGB & BSF indicate potential political turmoil in #Bangladesh.
1/n.
BSF/BGB became history as two countries came closer over the last 10 years. At a time when two govts signing defence cooperation pacts BGB's offensive raises many questions. More so, due 2 #Bangladesh#Army's general influence over BGB. 2/n hindustantimes.com/india-news/hop…
The incident took place in the backdrop of swelling of protests over #Feni river sharing pact. Feni is a small river dividing #Bangladesh and #india's #Tripura state. People of Tripura were already using river water. An interim pact regulated it. 3/n
We cannot call it #India-#Bangladesh prime ministerial meeting in true sense of the term, since #SheikhHasina came to the WEF meeting. The bilateral visit is scheduled later. However despite its limited scope I find the meeting very encouraging and beneficial for either side. 1/n
LPG deal is a mirror of #India-Bangladesh #diesel pipeline with the exception that in the case of #LPG, #Bangladesh is also getting #FDI. This is early stages of creation of a regional oil & gas grid, which may be expanded to #CLMV#Asean in the days to come. #Modi- #Hasina
3/n
Some utter nonsense is peddled wrt #assamnrc. Illegal immigrants r determined by the IMDT Act 1983, which was introduced by Indira Gandhi in 1983 midway during assam agitation (1979-85). 1/n
#assamnrc between 1983 & 2019 NRC update, 1.17 lakh people r declared "illegal immigrants". Another 2 lakh cases under IMDT Act r pending taking total to 3 lakh. Over 1 lakh already lost voting rights as per 1997 HC order. 2/n
It means, there were 3 lakh declared/suspected illegal immigrants till #assamnrc was published. Over 1 lakh lost voting rights since 1997. And Guwahati HC denied citizenship to children of illegal immigrants. 3/n
There is a saying in Bengali which means the house owner starts taking precautions once the robbery is over. For last three weeks @RahulGandhi became a poster boy of #Pakistan by his immature acts on #Kashmir issue. The realization now dawns that he must change track. 1/n
It is not known what prompted #RahulGandhi 2 try visiting #Kashmir last week, knowing fully well that the #Modi government got moral/legal sanction from the Supreme Court 2 take all preventive measures 2 stop blood spill and, that Gandhi would be returned like other leaders. 2/n
One may see the shadow of #Wayanad in #RahulGandhi's desperation but, to me his acts only helped the politically irrelevant #Left to stay in news. Left has a history of opposing Congress in States while joining hands hands in d Centre. #Congress's gains were short term. 3/n