Maharashtra BJP’s ‘unprecedented’ palindrome to success
Deccan ChronicleOn September 15, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, while touring Pune as part of the Maha Janadesh Yatra, spoke to reporters: Wherever we go, the yatra is being welcomed by people and getting a huge response. Some like Union defence minister Rajnath Singh have urged cadres to aim for a whopping 250 seats – something even ally Ramdas Athawale believes the alliance can win. ‘Unprecedented victory’ would create new record Mr Fadnavis, who has been projected as the CM face of the alliance, is on the cusp of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to shatter electoral records in the state. However, the BJP-led alliance would be able to register an “unprecedented victory”, as envisioned by the chief minister, only if could equal or breach the 222 seat-mark. The number 222 has an electoral significance in Maharashtra politics, as Vasantrao Naik – Maharashtra’s longest-serving chief minister – was able to win that many seats for the Congress in the 1972 polls.