The Asian Age

Sweep to give BJP Assembly boost

Edge in 46 of the 70 berths in Delhi Prospects improve in Gujarat and Rajasthan polls

- SHASHI BHUSHAN

The BJP’s stunning victory in the capital’s municipal polls is all set to give the party an edge in at least 46 of the 70 Assembly berths in Delhi. BJP was routed in the 2015 Delhi Assembly polls. This victory has, however, has made the saffron party a force to reckon with in Delhi as well. The MCD poll results will also provide a major boost to the BJP for the forthcomin­g Assembly elections in Gujarat and Rajasthan.

With the victory, the political graph of BJP state unit chief Manoj Tiwari is on the upswing. Following the massive victory, Mr Tiwari could well be the party’s face for the next Assembly elections in Delhi.

Delhi’s victory has yet again re-establishe­d the BJP’s link with the urban middle class, not to mention the Poorvancha­lis. These were the sections the BJP had lost to AAP during the 2015 Assembly polls. The victory gives BJP the “hope” to retain all the seven Lok Sabha seats it had won during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections in Delhi. As for the next Assembly polls, the BJP is all set to target at least 60 of the 70 Assembly seats.

A senior BJP functionar­y said that despite claims by AAP, it’s clear that voters are “looking for a party which can provide good governance. AAP has lost the plot”.

The MCD polls have also given a clear signal that the charisma and vote catching power of the Prime Minister, Mr Narendra Modi continues unabated. Delhi chief minister and AAP chief Arvind Kejirwal’s repeated attempts, starting from pitching himself against Mr Modi in Varanasi during the general elections, have repeatedly failed. Virtually demolished by the Modi “magic”, Mr Kejriwal’s ambition to play a major role for the anti-BJP outfits has taken a major hit. Speculatio­ns are rife that being “out in the cold”, a “desperate” Kejriwal could look at the option for tying up with the Congress for “his political survival”, sources said.

As for BJP Delhi unit, it intends to step up on the gas.

The state unit may soon give additional responsibi­lities to those young workers who had aggressive­ly campaigned in the civic polls.

Delhi’s victory has yet again re-establishe­d the BJP’s link with the urban middle class, not to mention the Poorvancha­lis. These were the sections the BJP had lost to AAP during the 2015 Assembly polls

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from India