NDA set towards 400 seat mark, BJP to top-up in UP: Piyush Goyal
Amidst hectic campaigning by the top BJP leadership for the last phase on June 1, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said that the NDA was well within the target to cross the 400-seat mark in the 2024 elections.
He said while Prime Minister Narendra Modi will win Varanasi with a record margin, the party will bag more LS seats in UP as compared to 2019. “The atmosphere is superbly in favour of the BJP and the NDA all over country and there is no anti-incumbency against the Modi government,” he added. Minister Goyal, who also holds the consumer affairs and textile portfolios, has been camping in the city for the past two days meeting entrepreneurs and traders.
With Poorvanchal going to polls on June 1, the party has pushed key leaders to tackle particular segments in Varanasi with Home Minister Amit Shah conducting the entire electoral exercise, Party President JP Nadda is moving in and out of Varanasi and Cabinet Minister for Women and Child Development Smriti Irani coming to the Holy City today to woo the women voters in PM’s constituency.
The fact is that PM Modi is expected to win Varanasi hands down, with the current focus only on the vote margin of victory. The smooth BJP electoral machinery is evident in the city with key ministers and leaders targeting specific segments with remarkable efficiency. The public on its part is all for PM Modi for the third term as the city has improved dramatically in the past decade with excellent roads and across the board economic growth.
Talking to Hindustan Times, Minister Goyal said that the business community in the city was very happy with the GST and the rapid mitigation of their grievances by both the Center and State governments.
When asked about his own election from Mumbai North and the NDA’s performance in Maharashtra, he said he was very confident about the NDA’s doing well in his home state. He also added that the BJP will trump up its performance in West Bengal so muchthat the public will be amazed at the results.
While no BJP leader will tell you the NDA’s final performance, it is quite evident that they all are convinced that the BJP will add at least a score seats more than the last time with UP contributing some 70 seats to BJP’s kitty. Minister Goyal refused to go into numbers and was clear that the NDA will breach the 400 mark.
Talking on specific issues, he said that India will negotiate the FTA with Britain only after the new government is formed post July 4. He said the FTA with Canada is stuck till the time the Justin Trudeau government makes conducive atmosphere for talks.
“ India will do FTAs with other countries based on its interests and will not be forced to make any concessions,” he added. With only two days left before the final phase goes into silent mode, the BJP leadership is confident of a strong undercurrent in favour of PM Modi for the third time.