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MPs with the Highest Victory Margins in Indian Elections

Anil Basu (CPI-M)

MP Name: Anil Basu

Constituency: Arambagh, West Bengal

Election Year: 2004

Victory Margin: Anil Basu secured a record victory margin of 5,92,502 votes during the 2004 Lok Sabha elections.

Political Party: Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M)

Anil Basu, representing the CPI-M, made history with his landslide victory in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections from the Arambagh constituency in West Bengal. Here's a breakdown of his remarkable political journey:

Initial Election Victories:

Anil Basu was first elected to the eighth Lok Sabha in 1984 from the Arambagh constituency in West Bengal.

He retained his seat through consecutive elections, being re-elected in 1989, 1991, 1996, 1998, 1999, and 2004.

Record Victory Margin:

Anil Basu's victory in the 2004 general elections marked a significant milestone, as he achieved the highest victory margin in Lok Sabha poll history.

He secured an impressive victory margin of 5,92,502 votes, highlighting his strong support base and popularity among voters in Arambagh.

Political Affiliation:

Anil Basu was associated with the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M) throughout his political career.

His consistent electoral successes were a testament to the CPI-M's stronghold in the Arambagh constituency.

Expulsion from CPI-M:

Despite his electoral prowess, Anil Basu faced disciplinary action from the CPI-M in 2012.

He was expelled from the party on charges of nepotism, anti-party activities, and breach of discipline, marking a turbulent phase in his political journey.

During elections, political parties leave no stone unturned with their campaigns. These campaigns require strategic marketing techniques to win votes with a majority. Over the years, these strategies have evolved with trial and error and digital advancements. Politics around the world has shifted towards using digital media mainly using social media platforms and search engine optimisation, as a dominant part of campaigns. However, in India old and traditional campaigning is also still prevalent which includes politicians personally going to their respective constituencies, assuring the needs of people, handing out giveaways, giving speeches and portraying one as the most suited to bring about positive change. Building an image is extremely crucial and a  prototype for any politician. The fundamentals of that politician are what brings in the votes. 

Original source: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/buzz-around-dmk-as-team-prashant-kishor-hits-tamil-nadu-streets/articleshow/59519696.cms

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Prashant Kishor. Original source: https://theprint.in/opinion/why-winners-pick-prashant-kishor/364081/

In the Indian political arena, political leaders are seeking guidance from political strategist for gaining populist votes and electoral victories. Prashant Kishor is one of the most successful political strategies in India and is known as an election magician. He is known for curating the most ideal campaign strategies with the use of digital and social media. He is responsible for creating the ‘Modi wave’ in the 2014 Lok Sabha election along with his party (Bharatiya Janta Party). He has also worked alongside Nitish Kumar in 2015 and was delegated as his party, Janta Dal United’s Vice President and worked towards the success of Captain Amrinder Singh of Congress in Punjab in 2017 after having lost two previous assembly election (Dutta, 2018). Most recently, he mentored Arvind Kejriwal’s political action committee and win the Delhi assembly election, 2020. His success rate is almost 100% when it comes to creating suitable political campaigns for leaders to win elections. He has a well-built agency called I-PAC which consists of lawyers, media experts, financial managers and web specialists. By using the phenomenon of social media and using strategies aimed at the interest of the youth.

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References

For the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, I worked as an independent communication strategist for the candidate from the Ranchi constituency - Shri Subodh Kant Sahai who has been a former Home and Tourism Minister under the UPA government. 

After a month and a half of on-ground research, I took a two pronged approach for his communication strategy. I also developed a brand code where all creatives had a similar look and feel and used the same fonts and colours to ensure the visual recall value remained high.

A conscious decision run a positive campaign sans mud slinging as, as per research, since the campaigning at the national stage had gotten ugly, people wanted to hear a voice of hope and not negativity. 

MERI RANCHI

A campaign that ran as a voter awareness campaign where people talked about the change they’d like to see in Ranchi. The idea was not to talk about the failures of the present government but showcase what needs to change in Ranchi. This campaign saw a presence in terms of hoardings, radio ads, onground activation and over 400 videos and interviews posted across multiple digital platforms. This campaign was developed as a voice of the people where they talked about the gaps in development in their constituency

MERI RANCHI MERA SUBODH

The Meri Ranchi campaign was ultimately morphed into the campaign for the candidate where we popularised the hashtag Meri Ranchi Mera Subodh for all digital posts along. Pre-nomination, the main tagline used was Sahaj Saral Sabke Subodh around which content was developed accordingly. It then progressed to Vinamra Anirodh, Chuinye Subodh, and content around that line was created accordingly. Both of these taglines were born of the ethos of what Meri Ranchi Mera Subodh aimed to capture. As mentioned earlier, the visual brand code was to remain similar so that there was instant visual recall. This again was spread across outdoor, onground activations and digital.

The dissemination of all content was also planned by me.

While this time the incumbent government has a majority to return to power, government formation post election results can often turn into a Game of Thrones. So, before PM Modi is sworn in for a second time, Ananya Satish brings to us the history of government formation in the world’s largest democracy.