High hopes.

Saffron hopes: RSS predicts 6, BJP expects 12 seats in Kerala

Both LDF and UDF sure BJP will draw a blank this time; won one seat in 2016

Agency Report | Thiruvananthapuram | 24 April, 2021 | 11:00 PM

Finally, the RSS/BJP combine in Kerala has come out with their own assessment of what's in store for the BJP-led NDA in Kerala when votes will be counted on May 2.

While the RSS has predicted six seats, the BJP appeared more confident that their tally will be 12 and its youthful state president K. Surendran, went a step ahead and said that neither the Left nor the Right in Kerala will get a clear majority.

However, both the ruling CPI-M-led Left and the Congress-led Opposition have predicted that the BJP’s account that was opened in the 2016 assembly polls, when it won one seat, will be closed this time, leaving the BJP drawing a blank in the 140-member Kerala Legislative Assembly.

Incidentally, soon after the April 6 assembly polls ended in the state, V. Muraleedharan, Union Minister of State for External Affairs, the lone Keralite in the Narendra Modi cabinet, said the BJP has put up an excellent fight in 27 constituencies.

On Friday, the Kerala unit of the RSS top brass pulled out their notebooks and after a few hours of detailed discussions, said they have huge hopes in six constituencies which include their sitting seat at Nemom in the state capital district, Manjeswaram, Palakkad, Thrissur, Kazhakootam and Vattiyoorkavu.

In the BJP list of winning seats apart from the above six, they have put their money in seats like Kasargode, Chathanoor, Malampuzha, Kozhikode North, Kattakada and Manaloor.

However, Surendran time and again has been saying that it will be the BJP who will be the deciding factor as neither of the traditional political fronts which have alternated in the seat of power, this time, will get a clear majority and what has left many astonished is his wishful thinking that if the BJP manages to win 35 seats, it will be a BJP led Kerala government.

Looking back at how the BJP has performed in elections in Kerala if Surendran’s wishful thinking is to materialise, it’s definitely something which is beyond rationale because at the 2014 Lok Sabha polls the BJP had a vote share of 10.33 per cent, which touched 15.10 per cent at the 2016 assembly polls (they won one out of the 140 seats) and at the 2019 Lok Sabha polls it was 15.6 per cent and drew a blank in the 20 constituencies.

At the 2015 local body polls the BJP secured 13.28 per cent vote share and managed to win around 1,200 seats out of around 21,000 seats and at the last year’s polls, Surendran’s predictions fell flat.

However, with just days left for the counting day, when the rival fronts have predicted victory in around 80 seats, all that remains to be seen is, whoever wins or loses, one thing is sure, the loser in the polls will definitely say, the winner had a tacit relation with the BJP. (IANS)