Brij Bhardwaj
Four States are receiving special attention from the ruling party during the upcoming poll for the Lok Sabha. They are Karnataka, Maharashtra, Bihar and Rajasthan. These states had been swept by the BJP in 2019 and it is now necessary for the BJP to repeat that performance if it has to get 370 seats in the Lok Sabha on its own, and for the NDA to cross the 400-seat mark.
The BJP is also making sure that it improves its performance in the South, where it performed well in Karnataka, while it is yet to establish its footprints in the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. In Maharashtra, which sends the second largest number of members to the Lok Sabha after U.P., in the last poll there was an alliance between the BJP and Shiv Sena. This time, Uddhav Thackeray’s group is in the opposition. However, this loss has been overcome by Shiv Sena getting divided and one of its factions joining the BJP-led NDA.
In addition, the NCP led by Sharad Pawar has also been divided. A majority of its members in the Maharashtra Assembly, led by Ajit Pawar, have joined hands with the BJP. The divisions in Shiv Sena and the NCP will help BJP, but it is yet to be seen if the sentimental attachment of Shiv Sena workers to the Thackeray family or of NCP workers to Sharad Pawar will play a role in the current elections.
In Karnataka, where BJP swept last time, it is at present out of power. It has tried to overcome the loss by bringing old war horse Yedyurappa to the forefront by giving the responsibility of reviving the BJP to his son. They have also formed an alliance with Janata Dal (Secular), which is led by the Devgauda family. This has improved the BJP’s position, but as seen in the recent poll for the Rajya Sabha, more will have to be done to meet the challenge posed by the Congress, which is in power in the state.
To make its presence felt, the BJP has announced its list of candidates well in advance, and has decided to field many sitting Ministers and former Chief Ministers as candidates for the Lok Sabha. By fielding a sitting Minister for the Lok Sabha polls from Kerala, it has shown that it is serious about spreading its influence in Southern states. Mr Chandrashekhar has been placed against the sitting Congress member Shashi Tharoor. The son of AK Antony, a veteran Congress leader and a popular actor, also are in the list of candidates from Kerala. At present, the BJP has no member from Kerala in the State Assembly or Lok Sabha.
The BJP has also made a special effort to meet the challenge in Delhi where Congress and Aam Aadmi party have come to an understanding. Out of five seats in the Union Territory, they have chosen to field four new candidates. The list shows that the BJP wants those who are in the Rajya Sabha to go into the field and find popular support by winning a seat in Lok Sabha.
With Prime Minister Narendra Modi back in Varanasi, Defence Minister Rajjnath Singh in Lucknow, Home Minister Amit Shah in Gandhinagar, and Smiti Irani, who defeated Mr Rahul Gandhi, from Amethi, the BJP is not shy about throwing challenges. By declaring the list of candidates for many critical seats well in advance it has given adequate time to candidates to prepare for the contest.
It is obviously a sign of confidence as the BJP has declared in the first instance itself a list of 195 candidates. Another crucial state where it is hoping to improve its position is West Bengal. In this state, the BJP hopes to come very close to the ruling Trinamool Congress. It has virtually eliminated Communist parties and the INC, which at one time were major players in the field and had hopes of winning a majority of Lok Sabha seats. It has thus posed a major challenge by highlighting atrocities on women by ruling party cadre and corruption.
BJP is moving ahead to set a new record to win over 400 seats in the Lok Sabha while the opposition INDIA alliance is struggling to keep themselves afloat. It will be interesting to see if the BJP creates a new record. If it falls short it will not be for lack of effort.
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