The media cell of the party was instructed to be more offensive during TV debates and counter every narrative of the opposition with facts. Santhosh held separate meetings with prominent leaders of the SC Morcha of the BJP and the party’s media cell on the second day of his visit to Lucknow.

All members of the SC Morcha of the BJP and Dalit ministers in the state government were present in the meeting. Several other meetings were also convened by the BJP leader.

In the party’s internal assessment after the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, it was concluded that Dalit voters apart from Jatavs, who were with the BJP in the 2019 polls, had shifted to the INDIA bloc this time.

Santhosh tried to find out the reasons for this shift while interacting with the party’s Dalit leaders. During the meeting, Santhosh stressed that the BJP’s SC Morcha and Dalit leaders should make all-out efforts to bring back Dalits into the party fold.

He also asked the SC Morcha to dispel the misconception spread by the opposition regarding reservation and change in the Constitution. During campaigning for the 2024 LS polls, BJP’s slogan ‘Ab ki baar 400 par’ was used by the opposition to drive home the point that BJP would change Constitution and revoke reservation if it won 400 seats and formed the government at the Centre.

“In today’s (Sunday) meeting, it was discussed what else could be done for the deprived community. We were asked to give suggestions on this issue,” Asim Arun, social welfare minister in the state government, told media persons after the meeting.

“The BJP is working for the deprived, but strategies are being prepared to also include those who are still excluded. Today’s meeting discussed how they can be further improved,” he added.

After coming out of the meeting, Gulab Devi, secondary education minister in the state government, said: “Dalits are getting maximum benefits when it comes to free ration. Another community which does not think in good terms for the BJP is also getting maximum benefit of the free ration scheme.” She added that Dalits were not angry with the BJP.

Former BJP MP from Barabanki Priyanka Rawat said the opposition misled people on the issue of reservation. In another meeting with the media, IT and social media cells of the party, Santhosh pointed out that circumstances had changed after the Lok Sabha election.

“Opposition is more offensive now and you (media cell) will have to counter every narrative (of the opposition) with facts,” Santhosh told members of the media and IT cells of the party.

He pointed out that news channels’ outlook towards the BJP had also changed somewhat after the 2024 Lok Sabha election. In this changed scenario, party’s media cell would have to counter every propaganda of the opposition with facts.

On the first day of the meeting on Saturday, Santhosh held separate meetings with the party’s core committee, including CM Yogi Adityanath, and six regional heads of the party. The senior BJP leader left for New Delhi in the evening.