FRONTMAN AND THE FIRST-TIME VOTER

The BJP is pushing its younger leaders to court the youth, even as Modi speaks directly to aspirational youngsters and women, while the RSS quietly does the groundwork

- By Anilesh S. Mahajan

PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA MODI CHOSE the virtual launch of a Bihar women's self-help cooperative on September 2 to break his silence. "My mother had nothing to do with politics," he said, voice heavy with hurt, referencing the viral video of a minor abusing his late mother in Darbhanga on August 27, seeking to turn a personal wound into a national lament.

That he framed it as an affront to "every mother, sister and daughter in India" wasn't a random ethical point. It was careful targeting.

Bihar's women are powerful, engaged voters. In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, with a 59.45 per cent turnout, they vastly outnumbered men (53 per cent). And in the past decade, the Modi-Nitish Kumar duo have held a strong appeal for women voters, built around social sector schemes, presented as an antithesis to the 'jungle raj' image trap of the RJD.