Congress sets up war-room strategy for the up coming elections

Team Udayavani, Dec 7, 2017, 12:50 PM IST

Bengaluru: Amidst 2018 Vidhan sabha election ruling Congress is in full swing leaving no room for the opposition and experimenting all strategies to retain its power, it has come up with corporate-style “war room” tactics and strategy to take on BJP in the upcoming election. Vasanthnagar locality is a venue where the “war-room” would be located. 

The term war-room was coined by a team of political strategists in the United States who worked for Bill Clinton’s first presidential campaign in the early 1990s. Ever since war rooms have become a regular fixture in election campaigns. Equipped with wall-mounted TVs, recorders and rows of laptops, the war room of the state Congress has been set up on the lines of the one headed by actor-turned-politician Ramya at the national level. It will act as a command centre to frame the party’s poll campaign narrative and counterattacks against BJP leaders while researching to launch an offensive at short notice. For now, the focus is on a full-fledged social media battle with the BJP.

A team of war room has been the brain behind the social media campaigns such as #BariOluModi, #BariSulluYeddyurappa (a pun identical to Yeddyurappa’s abbreviation BSY) and #ConstitutionNammaDharma which focuses on outbreak against BJP and also helped Congress to get a hold in social media. a concerted #BJPUgraAgenda campaign is on to target Mysore-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha. The campaigns are planned in coordination with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s in-house social media team.

Congress had a war room in place in 2009, headed by former union minister Jayaram Ramesh. However, in the 2013 Assembly and 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the party was irregular in its campaign effort. The war room will help in organised, focused content generation and research, giving the party a better edge in the elections.

The party has taken a stand that it will not push out fake news as part of its social media campaigns. “This has given us the edge and more credibility,” Srivatsa said.