New Delhi : Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alongside leaders of the BJP’s Central Election Committee (CEC), conducted separate meetings on Wednesday with party members from the forthcoming Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh state elections. During these discussions, the focus was on devising strategies to bolster the party’s standing in constituencies with weaker support.
Informed sources indicate that the BJP has pinpointed 125 “vulnerable” seats in Madhya Pradesh and 27 in Chhattisgarh, where the party’s position is comparatively fragile. These seats have been categorized as A, B, C, and D, based on the likelihood of victory in the Assembly polls. Categories A and B encompass seats where the party is strongly competitive, while categories C and D include seats where the party’s margin of victory was slim in the previous election or where it hasn’t historically won.
The BJP views seats categorized as C and D as challenges and convened the CEC meeting to formulate strategies for securing victory in these “weak seats.”
Out of the 125 vulnerable seats in Madhya Pradesh, 103 are seats that the BJP lost in the 2018 Assembly elections, while the remaining 22 are those where the party secured a narrow victory margin. Similarly, among the 27 susceptible seats in Chhattisgarh, five are those where the BJP has never emerged victorious, while the remaining 22 saw a narrow victory margin.
During these meetings, discussions centered around the most impactful issues in these weaker constituencies, which could resonate with local voters and establish a stronger connection.
Sources indicate that the party is likely to finalize potential candidates for these weaker seats soon and will guide them to actively engage in the field with the assistance of senior leaders.
Chaired by party President J.P. Nadda, the CEC meetings witnessed the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, and BJP National General Secretary (Organization) B.L. Santhosh, among other senior figures. Union Minister Bhupendra Yadav, who oversees Madhya Pradesh’s election affairs, and Om Prakash Mathur, the party’s Chhattisgarh in-charge, also participated in discussions relevant to their respective states.
Traditionally, the party’s CEC meetings are convened to deliberate on potential candidates for Legislative Assembly and Lok Sabha elections, typically after the Election Commission announces the election dates. However, sources indicate that the party is taking no chances in states set for elections and thus decided to hold CEC meetings prior to the formal announcement of election schedules.
With Assembly elections scheduled for Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, and Telangana by year-end, the BJP has initiated proactive preparations, drawing lessons from the outcomes of the 2018 elections. This early preparation aims to give BJP candidates an advantage over their rivals once the election schedules are officially declared.
