In Gujarat, an experiment of sorts is being done to bring the North and the South closer, at least linguistically. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal to the nation to respect the mother tongue and respect every language has been worked upon during the election campaign. And who can do it better than women?
Giving office-bearers a taste of diversity and working on bridging the language gap between north and south, the BJP’s Mahila Morcha is ensuring that southern office-bearers work with their northern counterparts during elections in Gujarat.
About 150 office-bearers from across the country have come to help with the Gujarat election, where there is a South Indian in-charge in every district and a North Indian and South Indian pair in every assembly working to support women. While many would think that Tamil Nadu is proud of its language, those working on the Gujarat election have been amazed to see how proud Gujaratis are of their language as well.
The election campaign in Gujarat is giving many office bearers of the Mahila Morcha a firsthand experience of how to give importance to the organizational structure.
“Public support is not permanent. Sometimes wave comes and sometimes goes, but if organization is strong then we can face any wave. Hence, BJP is keen to build organisation, and women cannot be left behind is,” said Vanathi Srinivasan, National President, Mahila Morcha, BJP.
language bridge between north and south
Mahila Morcha chief said that there is an office bearer from the north India Paired with his counterpart from the south. It is an attempt to create a better understanding of North and South in each of them.
“Here, many people from North India (think) South India means ‘Madrasi’, but when Mahila Morcha office bearers from different Southern states come and do organizational work for many days together with women in North India, So they tell them how South India is not just Madras (Chennai). Kerala speaks Malayalam, the languages of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh are different from Tamil Nadu.
He believes that working together will mean that the functionaries of the South will also understand the importance that other states give to their languages. “There are four to five Rajasthani dialects that we have learned. It is an experience to learn about the language, culture and food. I also ensured that the North and the South work together.”
Srinivasan had experienced how important it was to work together and learn about each other’s culture and language during the Uttar Pradesh elections. She says it is now working to break down north-south language and cultural barriers and misconceptions, at least among women activists.
“We have our office bearers mainly in urban areas in eight districts. We are sending our officials for each language. We have many Odia people, so our national office bearers from Odisha are campaigning in Surat. About 120 women are working in Gujarat. So, if we come across any problem, we immediately bring it to the notice of the party and also tell the local unit,” said the BJP’s women’s wing chief.
rely on women voters
PM Modi has been stressing on the role of women in bringing the BJP to power in the states and at the Center – a lesson the Mahila Morcha has also learned during various elections.
“From the Bihar elections, we have seen that the political victory of any party completely depends on the women voters. In those days we could see because of local issues and religion all political parties were eyeing women votes. Shift is happening. This is the real women empowerment. Manifestos of political parties, be it election, assembly or parliamentary, have a dedicated section for women. At least this much effect is created by us. Women voters are given importance. They are now considered as influential voter category. Gone are the times when they would vote for the one voted for by their husbands,” said Srinivasan.
Free gifts for work done during COVID-19
MLA Srinivasan said that women workers are treating women who get affected with free facilities like ration and vaccination by reminding them of the work done by the party during the outbreak of Covid-19.
“We are explaining how we used to import everything, and how the female lead takes care of everyone in difficult times. Like him, the BJP is also trying to sort out the issues. And some of the issues we are facing as a country and for this we need to be patient at least for some time,” Srinivasan said.
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