Making it clear that it would be a fight between Narendra Modi and others in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, BJP in-charge of elections in Uttar Pradesh, JP Nadda, said that the opposition parties had united because of the towering image of Modi and his image would help the party win at least 74 seats in the state.
“Elections are now more chemistry and not physics. We very well knew that an alliance will happen in UP in fear of the BJP’s strength. As we anticipated, this is going to happen hence a strategy is in place to counter it. We are confident about our strength and therefore we are targeting 50 per cent plus votes in the state in this elections,” Nadda said, on his maiden visit to UP after being nominated as the Lok Sabha election in-charge of the state earlier this month.
“People of nation and Uttar Pradesh will give blessings to the BJP and we will emerge victorious due to our hard work and Modiji’s development agenda. There is no question that Modiji will not be retained as the Prime Minister for the second term,” he said.
After introducing the three other deputy in-charges to the media who include Narottam Mishra (MP), party’s vice-president Dushyant Gautam and Sunil Ojha (Gujarat), Nadda claimed that the BJP will go to the elections on the agenda of development and the works done by the Narendra Modi government during the past five years.
He also narrated in detail the achievements of the Modi government and how the Ayushman Bharat national health scheme had turned into the biggest social security scheme of the world and how Rs 4 lakh crore had been sent to 431 beneficiaries through DBT in different schemes.
When asked a pointed question about corruption in BJP governments at the Centre as well as in UP, Nadda said the allegations were made just on perception and the government had no tolerance to corruption.
Commenting on the allegations made by BSP president Mayawati, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and the Congress about non-fulfilment of the poll promises made by the BJP, he said these parties and their leaders were speaking about their own records.
“Mayawati and Akhilesh are speaking about performance of their governments. We are ready to debate with figures on any platform .The BJP election agenda is nation’s development,” he said.
When asked about the bickering within the alliance in UP, particularly the criticism by Apna Dal (Sonelal) and Suheldeo Bhartiya Samaj Party, Nadda said, “There was some problem with the Apna Dal but now everything has been sorted out.”
“Running an alliance is a hard game and sometimes dispute occur. But now everything has been sorted out,” he added.
Commenting on the defeat of the BJP in the three Lok Sabha bypolls in UP, the Union minister said, “One cannot compare bypolls with general elections. Different strategies are adopted for these elections.”
The BJP’s Lok Sabha poll in-charge in UP claimed that the new 10 per cent reservation to the upper caste poor was an attempt to give equal representation to them.
“Marginalised section of society has been given reservation without disturbing the quota of the backwards and Dalits,” he said, adding that very soon the 10 per cent reservation for upper caste poor would be implemented in UP.