BJP Could Contest Over 450 Lok Sabha Seats in 2024 At a time when the Congress is planning to contest less than 300 seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections to accommodate allies of the INDIA bloc, the BJP could contest well over 450 seats in the 2024 battle in its bid to further up its rally of 303 seats from 2019
In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP contested 436 seats, won 303 seats and secured 22.9 crore votes with a 37.7 per cent vote share. The Congress, in 2019, BJP Could Contest Over 450 Lok Sabha Seats had contested as many as 421 seats, polling around 11.94 crore votes. This time, the Grand Old Party is planning to focus on only about 290 seats. But the BJP could contest well over 450 seats, sources say.
BJP Could Contest Over 450 Lok Sabha Seats
BJP Could Contest Over 450 Lok Sabha Seats This time, due to no alliance with JDU in Bihar, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena in Maharashtra or with AIADMK in Tamil Nadu or the Akali Dal in Punjab, BJP is set to contest more seats in these states, and overall in Lok Sabha in 2024.
In 2019, BJP contested only 17 of 40 seats in Bihar, 25 of 48 seats in Maharashtra and five of 39 seats in Tamil Nadu. BJP Could Contest Over 450 Lok Sabha Seats vThe JDU and Shiv Sena of Uddhav Thackeray had contested a large number of seats in the alliance as part of NDA then. In Punjab too, BJP had contested only three of the 13 seats.
This time, the BJP wants to contest on a lion’s share of seats in these states.
BJP feels that given Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity and big deliverables like the abrogation of Article 370 in J&K, the consecration of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya on January 22, and the development card, the party can easily surpass its 2019 tally of 303 seats.
With another tour to South India coming up later this week, PM Modi would have spent one week out of the first three weeks of 2024 in the South. This is a major push by the prime minister in South India ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
BJP Could Contest Over 450 Lok Sabha Seats In its initial list, the BJP is anticipated to reveal the names of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Rajnath Singh, and Home Minister Amit Shah.
Running high on confidence after winning assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is expected to contest more seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections compared to 2019.
The party plans to announce its candidates’ names in late January or early February, sources told India Today TV.
In its initial list, the BJP is anticipated to reveal the names of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rajnath Singh, and Home Minister Amit Shah. BJP Could Contest Over 450 Lok Sabha Seats This follows a similar pattern from the 2019 elections when PM Modi, Amit Shah, and Rajnath Singh’s names were announced in the party’s first list.
Here are the key pointers:
- The forthcoming list will feature candidates for more seats, particularly in the 164 constituencies where the party previously struggled or narrowly won in 2019. BJP Could Contest Over 450 Lok Sabha Seats Over the past two years, the BJP has been actively focusing on these challenging seats.
- In the previous Lok Sabha elections, the BJP contested 436 out of 543 seats, securing victories in 303 seats while facing defeat in 133. The party is also addressing 31 other weaker constituencies, grouping 164 seats and assigning responsibilities to central ministers and senior leaders, including Home Minister Amit Shah.
- These seats have been categorised into ‘C’ and ‘D’ groups, with 45 ministers overseeing two to three seats each. With a decrease in the number of allied parties this time around compared to 2019, the BJP aims to contest more seats across states where it previously had alliances—such as with Shiromani Akali Dal in Punjab, JD(U) in Bihar, Shiv Sena in Maharashtra, AIADMK in Tamil Nadu, and RLP in Rajasthan.
- The BJP has identified 14 weak seats in Uttar Pradesh, where they faced defeat in 16 seats in the last elections. However, they secured victories in two seats through by-polls – Rae Bareli and Mainpuri.
- The party plans to announce candidates for various constituencies including Rae Bareli, Mainpuri, Bijnor, Saharanpur, Sambhal, Muradabad, Ghazipur, Jaunpur, Rampur, Azamgarh, Nagina, Amroha, Ambedkar Nagar, Shravasti, Ghosi, and Lalganj in the first list.Some of these constituencies are considered strongholds of the Samajwadi Party, and the BJP is making concerted efforts to strengthen its presence in these regions.
- Similarly, Bihar will see announcements for Nawada, Supaul, Kishanganj, Katihar, Munger, Gaya, and Supaul constituencies. BJP Could Contest Over 450 Lok Sabha Seats
- The Chhindwara seat in Madhya Pradesh, previously a stronghold of former CM Kamal Nath, falls under the BJP’s focus due to past setbacks. Minister of Rural Development Giriraj Singh has been entrusted with responsibility for this seat.
- Kerala will witness contests in seats such as Thrissur, Thiruvananthapuram, and Pathanamthitta, where the BJP might field Suresh Gopi from Thrissur.
- In Maharashtra, the battleground will be in Baramati, Buldhana, Aurangabad, Amritsar in Punjab, Anandpur Sahib, Bhatinda, and Gurdaspur.
- While discussions about alliances in Punjab, Maharashtra, and Bihar continue, adjustments in contesting specific seats are under consideration.
- The BJP is contemplating not offering tickets to Lok Sabha MPs over 70 years of age or those who have won elections more than three times, opting instead for new faces. BJP Could Contest Over 450 Lok Sabha Seats Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a target to secure more than 50 per cent of the votes in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
