While the BJP seeks to add seats to its kitty, Opposition eyes better performance.
New Delhi: The next five phases of elections for the Lok Sabha are set to be crucial for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which won a major chunk, 223 out of 355 seats, in 2014, where polling will be held now onward. The party’s victory in these 223 seats contributed a lot to the formation of the Narendra Modi government last time.
Sources said the “real fight” will begin now as, while the BJP has the challenge to retain and add seats to its kitty, the Opposition parties have a chance to improve their performance this time around.
Following bumper voting in the first and second phases for 188 seats, the BJP is hopeful that the coming five phases, too, will see a massive voter turnout. The third phase of elections on 23 April will be for the highest number of seats (115), spread across 14 states. After the third phase, voting for more than half of the seats would be over.
The third phase will witness voting in Gujarat, where the BJP had won 26 out of 26 in the last elections.
In Karnataka, the BJP had won 17 seats the last time, out of which 13 will go for voting in the third phase.
In Uttar Pradesh, voting will be held for 64 seats in the next five phases, out of which the party had won 57 in the last Lok Sabha elections. This time, the contest has become tough for the BJP as the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) have joined hands.
Similarly in Bihar, voting for 31 seats will be held in the next five phases. The BJP had won 22 out of these 31 seats in the last elections. However, this time, the BJP is contesting only on 17 seats in the state, while the rest 23 have been given to alliance partners—Janata Dal (United) and Lok Janshakti Party (LJP).
The party is facing a tough challenge from the Mahagathbandhan consisting of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Congress and Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP).
The party had won 27 out of 29 seats in Madhya Pradesh last time, while it had swept all the 25 seats in Rajasthan.
In Delhi too, the party had won all the seven seats. It has the big challenge of repeating the performance this time too.
In Jharkhand, the party had won 13 out of 14 seats, but this time there is a strong alliance of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), Congress and Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM), which has made the battle
interesting in the tribal belt. While in Haryana, the party had won eight out of 10 seats, it had swept all the four seats in Himachal Pradesh. The remaining five phases will make or mar the chances of the BJP coming to power.