Rajasthan poll
BJP strategy for border seats
From Chander Parkash
Tribune News Service

SRIGANGANAGAR, Oct 6 — Even as Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee launched the party's election campaign in Rajasthan for the coming assembly poll at Jodhpur on October 3, a special strategy has been formed by the BJP for the 66 assembly segments of Rajasthan bordering Gujarat, Punjab, Haryana, UP and MP.

Party sources say in each border assembly segment, 125 workers led by senior leaders belonging to the neighbouring states, will handle the campaign of candidates with the help of local leaders of the constituency.

The BJP workers led by Mr Jugal Mahajan, general secretary, Mr Saraswati Dass and Mr Parminder Goyal, members, state executive of the BJP, Punjab, will look after the border assembly constituency of Hanumangarh and six more in the district. Likewise, the BJP workers led by leaders of Haryana will look after the campaign of party candidates in 15 assembly segments.

Party sources say a meeting of BJP workers from other states with workers of 66 border assembly segments of Rajasthan will be held at different stations on October 25 and 26. Senior central leaders will address them.

The workers will be given literature on the achievements of the Bhairon Singh Shekhawat government in the state for use in the election campaign.

The sources say party workers with leaders from Bathinda, Muktsar, Fazilka, Abohar, Jalalabad and Mansa areas of Punjab have made a quick survey of the prospects of party candidates in Karanpur, Pili Banga, Sangria, Hanumangarh and Kesri Singh Pura Bikaner.

At a meeting of Punjab and Rajasthan leaders of the BJP at Muktsar late last evening, various modalities of the campaign were discussed. Dr Ram Partap, Food and Supply Minister, Rajasthan, Mr Om Parkash Mathur, general secretary, BJP, Rajasthan, district leaders of Sriganganagar and Hanumangarh, Mr Jagmohan Kaura and Mr Jugal Mahajan, both general secretaries, BJP, Punjab, Mr Surjeet Jayani, state minister, and other leaders of the state participated.

It was decided that all BJP workers of Punjab would leave for their respective constituencies on November 1 and stay put in the assigned areas till the end of the election.

The BJP minister in the Punjab Government would address election rallies in the seven border assembly segments in the last week of the campaign.

Mr Parminder Goyal, who has been made observer for the coming elections, talking to TNS here, said the central BJP leadership was placing a greater stress on the 66 border assembly segments in Rajasthan so that the party could form the next government on its own.

He said during the meeting with leaders of Rajasthan at Muktsar last evening, Mr Jagmohan Kaura, general secretary (organisation) BJP, Punjab had given the assurance that workers from Punjab would campaign relentlessly bearing the expenses on their own.