The BJP went into the 2014 Lok Sabha elections with a massive advantage in its social media presence. The saffron party still dominates discourse on various social media platforms, but the likes of the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party have begun to catch up.
If the Congress has trolled Modi over the Rafale deal, Nirav Modi and the 'Main Bhi Chowkidar' campaign, April Fool's Day would have been too tempting an opportunity to let go.
So, on Monday, the Congress posted on Twitter that the BJP had released its 'manifesto'. A series of satirical posts followed, with an image of the BJP's lotus symbol being inverted. The first image showed Prime Minister Narendra Modi with what appears to be the manifesto's slogan: Ek Bharat, Berozgar Bharat (one India, unemployed India).
What followed was a series of slides, poking fun at the Narendra Modi government's record and alleged mistakes. The manifesto posted by the Congress lists the “Modi vision for India” as having 13 features, including “dictatorship over democracy” and “systematically destroy national economy”.
The BJP manifesto posted by the Congress also refers to “5 years of BJP led NDA” and lists achievements such as the “first ever blog minister Arun Jaitley” and “first ever WhatsApp University”, referring to allegations the Modi government had fudged economic data.
The manifesto shared by the Congress also lists the “promises” made by the BJP such as “all defence deals to be awarded to AA” (an apparent reference to Anil Ambani), demonetisation being “carried out every two years” and “feku-isms to be made a compulsory course” under education.
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The manifesto concludes with an “aim”: Sab se bade chor ko chowkidar banana aur uske fraudster mitron ko desh se bhagana (Make the biggest thief the watchman and allow his fraudster friends to leave the country).
The Congress and BJP have engaged in tit-for-tat social media posts on major issues. These include 'explainer' videos on the Rafale deal using the example of a housing society buying locks. Recently, both parties put out 'aspirational' videos themed on the song Azadi from the movie Gully Boy, with the videos aiming to show each other in a bad light.
With the poll heat set to rise, along with the summer heat, expect more such 'manifesto' spoofs and counters from all political parties!