2024 Lok Sabha Elections: Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is likely to emerge as the largest party in Odisha and West Bengal. He said he expects the BJP to win 18 of the 21 seats in Odisha and 30-35 of the 40 seats in West Bengal. In the last elections, the saffron party had won eight seats in Odisha and 18 in Bengal.
“The NDA will win over 400 seats. I have contested the election in Mumbai. Six seats in Mumbai will be given to the BJP and our Mahayuti ally, Shiv Sena,” the minister said.The BJP is in alliance with Ajit Pawar’s NCP and Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena in Maharashtra, which has 48 Lok Sabha seats.
Goyal also said the saffron party is almost certain to emerge as the largest party in south India. “In Odisha, the BJP is expected to win 18 of the 21 seats and in West Bengal, it is expected to win 30-35 seats,” he added.
The minister’s remarks came just a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi said West Bengal would be the BJP’s best performing state in India.
Earlier this month, political strategist Prashant Kishor said the saffron party could emerge as the largest party in Bengal, Telangana and Odisha. He said the battle in Telangana would be between the saffron party and the Indian National Congress. Kishor said both parties could win between six and nine seats.
Home Minister Amit Shah, who is the BJP’s chief strategist, said the saffron party would have a big lead in West Bengal. “We may win 24 to 30 seats in Bengal. In Odisha, we are targeting 17 Lok Sabha seats (out of a total of 21) and 75 Assembly seats (out of a total of 147 seats),” Shah said.
He said that in Telangana, the BJP would win around 10 of the 17 seats. “In Andhra Pradesh, our coalition government will form the government and the NDA will also win many of the Lok Sabha seats.”
The BJP has allied with Chandrababu Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party (TDP).
