New Delhi [India] : Ahead of the crucial 2022 Assembly polls, the Bharatiya Janata Party is drawing an ambitious plan to woo women voters’ in Uttar Pradesh through the plank of women’s safety, women’s empowerment and improved law and order situation in the state during the tenure of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. The BJP will organize women sammelans to discuss and debate the situation of women’s safety during the Yogi Adityanath government’s tenure. Named “Kamal Shakti Samvad”, the party has shortlisted “nau sthan” (nine places), taking a cue from nine “shakti roops” of Goddess Durga. The plan is to hold a congregation of 2000 women to discuss the changes in their lives after the BJP government came to power in the state in 2017. Beginning November 14 in Jhansi, and to be inaugurated by Mahila Morcha president Vanathi Shrinivasan, the party’s engagement with women voters will continue till November 27. The nine cities shortlisted as the “nau sthan” are Jhansi, Moradabad, Kanpur, Agra, Meerut, Prayagraj, Shahjahanpur, Gorakhpur and Lucknow. Women Cabinet and State Ministers in BJP ruled governments will be leading these samvads. “The focus will remain on mahila suraksha. A look at how safe women feel in UP. Formation of anti-Romeo squads and other steps like Centre’s steps for opening positions for women in the army and more participation in the police force have empowered women,” informed Vanathi Srinivasan, BJP mahila morcha national president. The move comes after the Yogi government came under attack by Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other opposition leaders over the issue of women’s safety in the state. The women’s wing of the party has drawn an elaborate plan to reach out to women voters. Around 50 women workers of the party have been called from nine states, like Haryana, Maharashtra and Jharkhand, to discuss and implement strategies drawn for state polls. The female cadre of BJP will engage with the women from every segment, connect with women beneficiaries of various government schemes, booth wise outreach and establishment of a call centre to aid women to avail government schemes launched for them by Modi-Yogi government, sources said. “Our aim is to target 5,000 women per Assembly segment. So many beneficiaries of the government schemes are feeling a change in their lives and this would be an attempt at reaching out to them,” said Srinivasan. The party will hold townhall meetings with women entrepreneurs and intellectuals as well. The list of programmes was prepared in consultation with party chief JP Nadda and national general secretary organisation BL Santhosh during a meeting with the office bearers after the National Executive Committee meeting, sources added. Uttar Pradesh is scheduled to go for Assembly polls early next year. In the 2017 UP Assembly elections, the BJP had secured 312 seats in the elections for the 403-member House. Samajwadi Party (SP) had bagged 47 seats, BSP had won 19 while Congress had bagged seven seats in the last Assembly polls in the state.
