The party that taught the country how to use the social media effectively to engage voters seems to have lost steam in the run-up to the Assembly polls in Maharashtra. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has largely failed to repeat its social media offensive in the state and, instead, has been bearing the brunt of attacks on the digital medium from rival parties, especially the Shiv Sena. After receiving a rap on their knuckles, the party’s social media team has now woken up and become active again.

The Sena had attacked the BJP for giving more prominence to Gujarat and Gujaratis. Messages bearing this allegation have been posted on the Sena’s Twitter and Facebook accounts, and also circulated via WhatsApp. In answer to this, the BJP will now start sharing special posters on all social media platforms showing that the Modi government has more ministers from Maharashtra. One such poster lists 13 portfolios that are with MPs from Maharashtra, as opposed to two from Gujarat in PM Narendra Modi’s Cabinet.