BJP Gung-ho, Eyes 13 of 17 LS Seats
Hyderabad: After decades of wait, the BJP in the state has emerged as a frontrunner in the Lok Sabha elections, finding strong support in favour of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The party has expressed confidence of crossing the double-digit
figure in this election, from four MPs in 2019.
The party’s triumph in north Telangana in 2019 and the Assembly polls of 2023, and the success in the GHMC elections, was dented by its lack of success in the southern part of the state. That, BJP sources said, had changed.
Union home minister Amit Shah expressed the same on Saturday, saying that the the party had emerged as a major player across the state.
BJP sources said that thanks to Prime Minister Modi’s charisma, it had developed a strong presence in rural pockets. Modi is more popular in rural areas this time than in the urban pockets due to the free Covid-19 vaccine, 5 kg rice to the poor and direct release of funds to gram panchayats.
The BJP also managed to erase the stigma that it was a party of the upper castes and that old-timers dictated its affairs. It has attracted a number of senior politicians from other parties, mainly the BRS, and gave them a lion’s share of its Lok Sabha seats. Many of them come from the BC, SC and ST groups.
The BJP high command tried to capitilise on the decline of the BRS and also strengthened the party’s organisational base and checked dissidence. These steps have helped the BJP occupy the space vacated by the pink party, sources said.
TS BJP president G.Kishan Reddy had acknowledged in an interview with Deccan Chronicle that the party lacked a strong leadership in the state, though it enjoyed strong sympathy. To redress this, he had welcomed leaders from other parties.
The aggressive campaign by the party’s national leaders, led by Modi and Amit Shah and featuring popular Union ministers leaders from other states, has also helped.
The party has also worked itself out of the trap on the reservations issue laid by Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, with a strong counter-attack focusing on the Muslim quota and how it had reportedly affected other weaker setions. It also highlighted the alleged non-fulfilment of promises by the Congress government.
In the campaign, BJP candidates mainly highlighted the construction of Lord Rama temple in Ayodhya, abrogation of Article 370 and banning triple talaq.