The much talked about Lok Sabha Polls of 2019 are just few months away . And the state which sents maximum number of Lok Sabha seats i.e 80, Uttar Pradesh is set for an intriguing battle.
As forgetting their bitter past , Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party of Mayawati have come together on one platform . Their mission – stop BJP. In the process they have in their alliance left two seats for the others to join. According to the arrangement SP – BSP will contest 38 seats each.
The synergy between the SP and BSP will not be an easy one . It would certainly be not easy for the cades of both to suddenly come together under one roof after years of bitter acrimony. The 1995 guest house incident involving Mayawati is one of the dark episodes the duo when they last teamed up.
Left out of the alliance the Congress has no option but go alone. So it has hence decided to contest all 80 seats in the state . Congress president Rahul Gandhi said he respects the alliance of the SP – BSP and the polls is chance for the Congress get it;s foothold in the state. Reduced to 2 in 2014 they would certainly like to repeat their 2009 performance of 21 seats in 2019. It is tough ask though. And there is no harm of been optimistic either.
In the 2104 Lok Sabha polls , riding the ‘Modi Wave’, BJP powered home to bag 71 seats. The rivals SP bagged 5, Congress 2, Apna Dal 2 , BSP drew a blank. So can the tie –up between the SP – BSP reverse this dismal scoreline in 2019 ? It remians to be seen.
Uttar Pradesh is in- fact the last chance for BSP- SP to show their strength. Both these parties did not fare well in the 2018 assembly polls in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Telangana . Hence it is make or break for them .
Can the SP and BSP capitalise on the errors in governance of incumbent chief minister Yogi Adityanath with incidents of lynchings , cow slaughter, fake encounter killings by police among others ? If they are able to do then they could potentially harm the BJP. If BJP assumingly loses some fair share of seats in the state then their chances of the returning to power in the Centre could be on the shaky. It had attained its peak in 2014 and it would be miracle if they can repeat that after five years.
Moreover, the saffron party has already chalked out strategies to win seats in others states in the North- East and the Eastern region like Odisha, West Bengal in the event of their losing some seats in the North. The loss in three hindi – belt states – Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh have some what upset their calculations to reach the target of 350 plus seats.
The BJP has so far dismissed all alliances and are confident of winning more seats in UP than it did in 2014 Lok Sabha Polls. Only time will tell whether this bravado holds on or not . Till then this battle in Uttar Pradesh where the saffron party is now single-handedly pitted versus the rest promises to be a fascinating battle.
