Old whine in new battle

Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi may have extended a hand of friendship to other parties, but when it comes to the main opposition, the Bharatiya Janata Party, there is no let-up in hostilities. And with judgment day, May 16, round the corner, the battle has entered cyberspace.

BJP claims it is miles ahead of the Congress when it comes to internet-related campaigns. Not quite, says the Congress, which has launched a scathing attack on BJP’s web campaign and its advertising budget, and called its prime ministerial candidate L K Advani’s blog a “me-too” one for being fashioned after US President Barack Obama’s.

In reference to India Shining, BJP’s campaign plank in the last elections, which did not quite pay off, the Congress has dubbed BJP’s web campaign “BJP Shining”. Its own talks about aam aadmi ke badhte kadam, in keeping with the line that was seen to have paid dividends in the elections five years ago.

Citing data from website monitoring outfit Alexa, the Congress claims more users show interest in the Congress site before the polling dates.

Expectedly, BJP disagrees. The head of its internet cell, Prodyut Bora, told Business Standard: “BJP doubts the authenticity of figures given in Alexa as it is based on (a) sampling model. These are based on feedback from internet users who opt to download their toolbar.”

In response, Vishvajit P Singh, in charge of Congress’ computer section, said: “Is the BJP questioning the authenticity of the Alexa figures, which show Advani and BJP sites ahead of the Congress’ on most days?”

The Congress says its new-look site is designed to provide a simple interface and easy navigation since “connectivity in many parts of India is still very slow and this kind of site would do far better than a bells-and-whistles site.”

Both parties assert they have meagre budgets for web campaigns and have professional volunteers running the show.

BJP, which has tied up with Google for online advertising, says it has spent a “pittance” on the internet campaign — about 1 per cent of its campaign budget. The Congress says the Google-BJP tie-up is the only reason Advani's blog gets more visitors. This is a non-issue for BJP.

“Anybody who says a product doesn’t require marketing is living in fool's paradise or is totally ignorant of market dynamics,” said Bora.

Advani's blog had 446,625 visitors in April, of which 76.38 per cent were new visitors, said Bora. Each of Advani's posting got 100 comments, he added.