With only a couple of months remaining for the Maharashtra Assembly polls, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is planning to hold a 'Samwad Yatra' covering all 288 seats, stated Chandrashekhar Bawankule, the saffron party's state unit president.
To finalise the details of the yatra, a meeting will be held in Pune on July 21 with Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari attending it, added Bawankule.
"Over 5,000 party office-bearers from the state are invited (for the meeting in Pune). Key party members will meet in Mumbai on July 19 before the Pune event," he stated.
The success of this yatra is crucial for the BJP as it faced a massive setback in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls in Maharashtra. From 23 seats in 2019, the party only managed to win nine this time. However, despite securing only nine out of 28 seats it contested, the BJP maintained a vote share of 26.18 per cent, a slight decrease from its 2019 performance of 27.84 per cent. The BJP polled 14,913,914 votes this time.
.jpg)
After the party's poor show, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis offered to resign. He said, "Whatever loss we suffered in Maharashtra... I take full responsibility. I urge top leadership to relieve me of my ministerial duties..." Later, he rescinded the resignation after top party leaders asked him to stay on. "I met Amit Shah who asked me to continue, and I will do that. We have a strategy (for Assembly polls) and I have already started the work,” Fadnavis said.
.jpg)
The election for the 288-seat Maharashtra Assembly is likely to be held in October. To form a government, a party or an alliance needs a minimum of 145 seats.
