bjp-faces-loose-in-maha-fadnavis-accepts-blame

In the wake of the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) significant decline in seat share during the Lok Sabha polls in Maharashtra, state Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has taken full responsibility for the party's poor performance.

 

Addressing the media in Mumbai on Wednesday, Fadnavis requested the top leadership to relieve him of his ministerial duties so he can focus on working for the party and preparing for the upcoming state assembly polls.

 

Fadnavis attributed the loss to several factors, including issues affecting farmers, misinformation about constitutional changes, and the influence of the Muslim and Maratha movements. "Farmers’ issues played a dominant role in some seats.

 

Also, the false propaganda that the constitution would be altered impacted some voters. The outright votes of the Muslims and the Maratha movement had an impact," he explained.

 

The BJP's seat count in Maharashtra plummeted to nine, a significant drop from the 23 seats it secured in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, with a vote share of 26.18%. In contrast, the Congress marginally improved its performance, winning 13 seats in the state.

 

Expressing his gratitude towards the electorate, Fadnavis said, "I thank the people of the country who allowed Modiji (PM Narendra Modi) to take oath as the Prime Minister for the third time. The NDA performed well in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh as well. I thank people for that."

 

He also took a jab at the opposition alliance, the INDIA bloc, stating, "The BJP alone has gained more seats than the INDIA bloc. The propaganda that the constitution would be changed was disseminated by them. We needed to curb it which we couldn’t."

 

Despite the BJP's overall lower performance compared to previous years, the party's tally was still considerable. The BJP won fewer seats than its 2019 tally of 303 and the 282 seats it had won in 2014.

 

Meanwhile, the Congress showed significant growth, winning 99 seats compared to 52 in 2019 and 44 in 2014. The INDIA bloc, a coalition of opposition parties, crossed the 230 mark, posing a strong challenge and defying exit poll predictions.

 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has secured a third term, backed by coalition partners such as the Nitish Kumar-led JD(U) and the Chandrababu Naidu-led TDP.

 

However, the BJP fell 32 seats short of the 272 majority mark after votes were counted in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. This marks the first time since the BJP's rise to power in 2014 that it has not secured a majority on its own.