Team News Riveting
Kolkata, August 15
A senior leader of Trinamool Congress in Kolkata was stunned to see the data when a colleague tabled before him. It was related to the Didi Ke Bolo campaign that enabled people air their grievances and ask for help.
Most of the grievances received in the Didi Ke Bolo helplines were about corruption and malpractices by Trinamool functionaries. The Trinamool leader was left with no option than to put the data under the cold carpet.
The campaign was the brainchild of Prashant Kishore, who became the biggest name in election campaign management in India after having led Modi’s 2014 Lok Sabha and Nitish’s 2015 Assembly campaigns successfully. Politicians are in mad rush to manage their campaigns and give it a midas touch.
Trinamool Congress was no exception. Following jolt in the Lok Sabha election, Mamata Banerjee’s nephew and heir political heir Abhishek Banerjee roped in Prashant Kishor. The two met Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee behind closed doors for over two hours in early June last year.
Prashant and the firm that he runs I-PAC (Indian Political Action Committee) started working on the project in a corporate-style; designing strategies to help Mamata Banerjee stave off the stiff challenge mounted by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
While the Didi ke Bolo did create a buzz initially, it soon fizzled out. The other blunder was Prashant’s suggestion to distance Mamata from her party functionaries, who were perceived to be corrupt and asked them to return the ‘cut money’ (commissions or bribes) they had taken from people. While it sent a message that Trinamool leaders were corrupt, a number of Trinamool functionaries, including its MLAs and panchayat members, got besieged by angry masses demanding return of the commissions the former had taken.
Prashant’s strategy reportedly backfired.
But despite it backfiring, PK continued with this strategy. His strategy on foodgrain and combating pandemic also did not go well in the state. What left was a large section of Trinamool functionaries fuming and alienated. Many senior and mid-ranking leaders of that party have resented the interference by the ‘outsiders’. They viewed the IPAC workers as encroachers on their turf.
But Mamata trust continues for Prashant and his team even as many senior leaders feel it will inflict more harm than good.
