Why BJP not keen on Kangana Ranaut to campaign for Bihar Assembly polls

Contrary to media speculations, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has clarified that it won’t rope in actress Kangana Ranaut to campaign for the party in the ensuing Bihar Assembly elections.

“We don’t need any star to campaign for us. We have the biggest star Narendra Modi who has helped us win the national as well as State elections,” said former Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis here in the State capital. Incidentally, Fadnavis has been made BJP in-charge of Bihar Assembly elections along with party general secretary Bhupendra Yadav.

Kangana, who is hogging the limelight for criticising the Uddhav Thackeray government for poor handling of the Sushant Singh Rajput death case and other related issues, was, as reported in a section of media, expected to campaign for the saffron camp.

For the BJP, Sushant’s death issue is an emotive one. The party has put out posters to highlight how it’s fighting for justice for the Patna-born actor Sushant, who died due to suicide on June 14 and the matter is now being investigated by the CBI. Notably, it was Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who last month recommended the CBI probe into the death case.

“If Kangana wants to come to Bihar, she is welcome. It’s a free and democratic country. But we are not giving her any platform to campaign,” reiterated another senior BJP functionary Devesh Kumar.

Experts too argue that Kangana’s campaign may not pay many political dividends to the BJP.

“Some people may be of the opinion that SSR and Kangana may help a particular caste (read: Rajputs) to back the BJP. But Sushant’s death is no more an issue in Bihar (it’s only in the electronic media). For the majority of people of Bihar, more important issues are: flood, unemployment, migration, job avenues, governance, and law and order. It’s the rural voters, and the not the middle class, who largely decide who will rule Bihar,” argued film and political expert Vinod Anupam.