How BJP uses gods and icons of marginalised communities in Bengal and elsewhere to draft them into Hindutva politics
It has turned the heterogeneity of Hindu culture into its strength
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to visit the Matua temple at Orkandi later this month when he travels to Dhaka. He had also started his 2019 election campaign in West Bengal by seeking the blessing of Boro Maa, the head of Matua sect. The Matua is one of the largest Dalit communities of West Bengal, which migrated from East Bengal after Partition. Similarly, the party invokes Lord Birsa Munda (Bhagwan Birsa) in the Adivasi belt these days. In Bengal, we see the BJP constantly extending its political influence by assimilating left-out and marginal communities in various ways. These actions point to the BJP’s attempts to expand its footprint by including new gods and goddesses in its pantheon. [ . . . ]
https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/narendra-modi-bjp-hindutva-politics-7233187/
