Kolkata: Former Chief Minister of Rajasthan, Vasundhara Raje, is expected to get an important role in the forthcoming Bengal election.
The two times chief minister has been sidelined in Rajasthan politics since the 2018 state assembly polls, in which Bharatiya Janata Party was defeated by Congress. Even during the high voltage political drama between Congress Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and Rajasthan Congress president Sachin Pilot last year, Raje remained silent.
But last week, Raje met several BJP leaders in Delhi including ministers Rajnath Singh and Nitin Gadkari, and the party’s national president JP Nadda.
After an hour-long meeting with Home Minister Amit Shah, Raje was given the go-ahead to be utilised in Bengal. It is because of her proximity to the large Rajasthani diaspora, which has great influence in trade and industry in Bengal that she will be given the responsibility to attract these voters say political observers. After the meet, the former CM tweeted her picture with the home minister.
Raje has also attended earlier meetings of the Rajasthani diaspora in Bengal.
It will help the saffron brigade reach not only the Marwari community but also other business communities in Bengal and also those associated – directly or indirectly with them.
The Marwari community is in an influential position in Bengal, with large numbers associated with them commercially hence attracting them is crucial for BJP, which desperately wants Bengal in its kitty.
Raje will also be a formidable female face against Mamata Banerjee, the chief minister of Bengal and Trinamool Congress chief.
Till 2018, when Dholpur’s acting queen was at the helm of affairs of Rajasthan, she and Mamata Banerjee were the only two female chief ministers in India. Now, Banerjee is the only woman chief minister in the country.
As far as BJP West Bengal is concerned, Kailash Vijayvargya is currently in-charge of Bengal affairs, while Dilip Ghosh is the BJP state president and remains mostly in the news for all the wrong reasons and making controversial statements.
As the party is putting in everything it has into Bengal election, those who will help capture power in the state will be amply rewarded, claim political observers from Rajasthan.
While some TMC and Congress leaders have jumped ship so far and joined the BJP, none has the calibre or status of Mamata Banerjee. It will be interesting to see how Raje fares against Didi.
eNewsroom reached out to Vasundhara Raje for her comment on the issue, but she did not want to comment on it.
