Rajat Sethi, the Prashant Kishor of BJP’s Assam Elections

Rajat Sethi is the brain behind BJP’s Assam victory.

There is only one name that is making the headlines after BJP got two thirds majority in the Assam elections. It is said Rajat Sethi’s team played a key role in BJP’s success. In fact it was his team which prepared the election strategy for BJP’s win in Assam. In a way, it brought back the lost Prashant Kishor (PK) in the garb of Rajat Sethi.

Let’s glance through Rajat’s profile and his strategy for BJP:

Journey From IIT Kharagpur to Harvard

About thirty years old, Rajat belongs to Kanpur in UP. After graduating from IIT, Kharagpur, he went to Harvard University from where he did his graduation in Public Policy. He began organising events on behalf of Harvard-India Association during which he became close to BJP chief secretary Ram Madhav.

Rajat Spotted by Ram Madhav

It is said success brings in its train more success and this applies to Rajat. The success of Prime Minister Modi’s visit to the US is also attributed to him and his team. According to sources, he was part of Hillary Clinton’s election campaign in the US. It was then that Ram Madhav made an offer to Rajat on behalf of the party which the latter accepted.

Brought Two People Along From Team PK

Two people in team Rajat are those who have already worked in Prashant Kishor’s team. The same PK who, during the Lok Sabha elections, was responsible for preparing the blueprint for Narendra Modi’s election campaign. Later, he worked for Nitish-Lalu’s victory in Bihar.

Treading Cautiously in Assam

In Assam, Congress party had been ruling the state for the last 15 years. Rajat and his team could imagine the difficulty in dislodging the Congress. The team began its work in November last year identifying issues in each polling booth covering the entire assembly segment. As focus shifted to local issues and problems, people became naturally inclined towards BJP.

Sarbanand Was Made the Face of the Party

Rajat and his team were able to convince the BJP that if the party in Assam did not declare the chief ministerial candidate, it will not send a good message to the people. Sarbananda Sonowal, known for his clean image, was suggested for the Chief Minister’s post. The success of this strategy can be seen from the election results. After working at the grassroots, the team felt that an electoral arrangement with local parties like the Asom Gana Parishad can work to BJP’S advantage. This strategy yielded rich political dividends.

However, it remains to be seen how long political parties garner success with the help of young strategists like Rajat Sethi and Prashant Kishor.

(The story has been translated from the original by Shambhavi Prakash.)