New Delhi: Aggressive micro-management by the RSS-BJP leadership, including holding more than 2,20,000 “kutumbh” (home) meetings where the Sangh Parivar cadre personally hosted not more than two to three families at a time, nearly 10,000 meetings by the BJP leaders and around 700 public meetings and roadshows by the senior leaders, helped the saffron party end its 27-years-old “vanvaas” from the seat of power in Delhi.Replicating the strategy which helped the BJP in snatching stunning victories in Haryana and then Maharashtra, the RSS-BJP leadership reached through its cadre the smallest unit, kutumbh — just two to three families at a time — along with the BJP’s manifesto. In constituencies where lower-income groups are a major votebank, the RSS-BJP cadre spent the maximum time. Jhuggi clusters were also one of the primary focuses of the election strategy, with women and girls being the main target group. While AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal’s “sheesh mahal” was one of the main talking points for the BJP leaders during campaigning, it was mainly the local issues during “at home” meetings.From bad roads to lack of sanitation, water supply crisis to rising crime, the RSS-BJP workers listened to every problem and assured solutions while citing examples of the BJP-ruled states with “facts and figures”.Amongst women and girls, the RSS-BJP workers highlighted how the AAP government prioritised the “supply” of liquor over basic infrastructure and safety. Amongst the lower-income group, the free ration scheme of the Modi government was also one of the main talking points and how the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP has provided homes to those living in jhuggies. The BJP leadership also distributed certificates regarding the party’s Mahila Samriddhi Yojana, which guarantees ₹2,500 per month for underprivileged women, citing the benefits women have been getting in other BJP-ruled states under similar schemes.According to political pundits, the Union Budget also proved beneficial for the BJP, as the middle class and the neo-middle class, considered the saffron party’s strong votebank, voted again for the BJP in the Assembly polls just like they did during the Lok Sabha elections, despite being questioned by the AAP for projecting no chief ministerial face.The RSS-BJP cadre also highlighted the jail stints of the AAP leaders, including Mr Kejriwal and the “scams and corruption” over which they were arrested. Sources said one of the main talking points in such at-home meetings was how, more than the governance, the AAP government was in the news for “misgovernance, corruption, scams and fights with the lieutenant-governor.
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