Three phases of India’s seven-phase General Elections, spanning across several weeks, have now concluded—crossing almost the half-way mark. Barring a few sporadic incidents, the third phase ended peacefully with a decent voter turnout of 64.45 per cent. While four phases of the massive General Elections still remain, more than half of the total seats open to polls (543) are already covered.
A cursory glance on the overall seats that underwent polling would reveal that, roughly, the strongholds of the BJP—in relative terms—are covered thus far. Number wise, the chances of the opposition to take the ruling party head on may be brighter in the latter half of the General Elections i.e., the upcoming fourth to seventh phases. After the completion of the first three phases, the states that still have the opportunity to vote include: West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, and Odisha.
As things stand today, the BJP-led NDA alliance is still pumped up with its ambitious target of bagging more than 400 seats—a feat achieved only once in Indian history after the assassination of Indira Gandhi. On the ground though, a realisation appears to have dawned upon the party supporters as well, that crossing the 400-mark is now an uphill task. Any overwhelming wave of support for any of the two alliances—INDIA and NDA—is absent on the ground. The pragmatic aim, thus, for both the alliances is to somehow form a government at the Centre. Owing to a lack of strong counter-narrative, the INDIA bloc in particular appears to be struggling to garner a sweeping support from the electorate that would translate into consequential votes.
The BJP is evidently banking upon the popularity of Narendra Modi. From the claims of improvements in economy, infrastructure development, and national security to even the rationing of food grains—everything is being branded under Modi’s name. ‘Modi ki guarantee’ is being touted as a panacea for all challenges confronting India. With hero worship approaching its peak, institutional fallacies, governance lapses, and structural inadequacies are being pushed to the margins of electoral narrative.
For the BJP, the ambition of 400-plus seats appears just to be taking the form of desperation—evident in the unsubstantiated claims and allegations, bordering on the verge of misinformation, floated by the leaders of tallest stature. BJP stalwart Narendra Modi appealed to voters’ fear factor by asserting that his party “needs 400 seats so that the Congress does not bring back Article 370 in Kashmir or put a ‘Babri lock’ on Ram Temple in Ayodhya or gift away the nation’s vacant land and islands to other nations. Modi needs 400 seats so that the Congress does not break into the reservation given to SCs, STs, and OBCs by Baba Saheb and the Constitution.” These allegations are devoid of any substantiated proof, and must be scrutinised by the Election Commission of India. The opposition, too, is not much behind in peddling unsubstantiated rhetoric.
In the process, the real issues like unemployment and inequality, despite being glaring in their outlook, are pushed to the margins. At the same time, several powerful issues like the sex video scandal of a leader from one of BJP’s alliance partners have rocked the political stage, and can have far-ranging consequences. The conduct of politicians and voters interact with each other to create unique political narratives. While politicians react and respond to, and try to influence, popular sentiments, it is the duty of the electorate to overwhelmingly exercise their franchise in a manner that would reorient the country’s path to higher progress.