That changed when on Sunday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah held a virtual rally for the first time in Indian political history for the upcoming Bihar elections which is slated for October-November this year, giving a clear indication that the Bihar elections for 243 assembly seats will be held on time. Even though Shah termed this rally as not an election rally and called it a virtual rally to boost the morale of the public during the COVID-19 pandemic, his speech and tone were candid enough for any layman to understand that it was no less than the launch of a political rally for the Bihar elections.
Shah had a laundry list of ‘achievements’ of the Union government and cited the Ayushman Bharat Health Insurance Scheme, power connections for the poor, toilets, the airstrikes in retaliation to the Pulwama terror attack, triple talaq, Ram Janambhumi, Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), the establishment of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) and the scrapping of Article 370 that gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir etc during his virtual rally which according to him was not a political campaign. The opposition, including the Congress has opposed and rebuked the ‘virtual rally’ of Amit Shah. Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) in Bihar launched a protest against the virtual rally and named the protest as ‘Garib Adhikar Diwas’. RJD leaders Rabri Devi, Tejashwi Yadav and Tej Pratap Yadav clang utensils as part of the protest. The leaders stood in a circular marking and observed social distancing while observing the protest.
Using technology to the best of their abilities, Bharatiya Janata Party president JP Nadda has planned at least 75 such virtual rallies in the coming one month and Prime Minister Modi is also likely to address and launch the Bihar poll campaign this week. The Nitish Kumar-led NDA government in Bihar and the Union government have been facing flak over the issue as lakhs of the State’s residents have returned from other States after facing severe hardships. Modi’s speech will also set the tone and tenor for the BJP’s poll campaign at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has hit the economy and employment very hard. With the virtual and digital mode now the new normal as we have seen in several webinars, for political parties too it has become important. Several standard operating procedures (SOPs) have been drafted and set up to connect with cadres and people due to social distancing guidelines. A maximum of 50 people will be allowed at the venues where Modi’s virtual rally will be streamed.
Meanwhile, in the neighbouring State of West Bengal, BJP is preparing to make Amit Shah’s virtual rally, that will be streamed live through various digital platforms on June 9, a success as the party has set itself a target of reaching out to maximum number of people. However, the State Assembly elections in West Bengal are scheduled for April-May next year. Political battles in this COVID-19 era will be fought on digital platforms and every party will now have to take a leaf out of BJP’s book on how to host virtual rallies. Connectivity will play a key role now and extravagant expenditure on rallies will the drastically cut by non hiring of helicopters, chairs, food vendors, flag makers, stage decorators, hotel stays, cars, buses and trucks. Yes, it will save a lot of money, but the bigger question is that all these service providers will be severely hit if virtual rallies become a hit.
According to a study by the Centre for Media Studies (CMS), a not-for-profit multi-disciplinary development research think-tank, a staggering Rs 55,000-60,000 crore was spent during the campaign for the Lok Sabha elections, 2019.The figure is almost twice the amount estimated by the CMS for the last general polls in 2014 at Rs 30,000 crore. If virtual rallies become a success and people accept it as a new norm it is likely to save lot of money which can be used for development work rather that wasted every five years if there is no snap elections. Yes, the service providers during the election will have to look for a new business and not bank for profits during the polls.
