BJP Will Get More Than 282 Seats, Says Amit Shah

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah has expressed confidence that his party will breach its 2014 tally of 282 seats by a large margin in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, adding even the NDA's figures will go up.

In an interview with English daily Hindustan Times, Shah said his party's analysis of the concluded phases of voting shows that not just the number of seats but also the winning margin is increasing, adding the BJP/NDA will also expand in terms of area.

Shah says the public has faith and confidence in Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "We can perceive the enthusiasm among the electorate in making Modi PM again. Secondly, the Modi government has done all-round development," he said.

The BJP candidate from Gandhinagar, Gujarat, said the prime minister has been able to convince people that he can handle the matter of national security, "which is the topmost priority of the regime."

"Whether it is taking tough decisions on Jammu and Kashmir or being the most successful government in handling international diplomacy and challenges. In all these issues, the public has seen sweeping positive change from the past," he said.

Shah suggested there had been longing for a "focussed strategy" on national security among the masses which PM Narendra Modi has been able to offer.

When told that there is a section political observers and analysts that believes the BJP could get reduced to 180 seats this election and then the opposition could cobble together a government, Shah said the same was said in 2014 too.

Interestingly, Shah's prediction on BJP's performance came a day after BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav, in an interview with Bloomberg, dropped the hint that the saffron party might not touch the majority mark and therefore may need allies to form the government.