Congress MP Shashi Tharoor expressed his intrigue over psephologist Yogendra Yadav’s revised prediction that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) might not secure a majority in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Yogendra Yadav’s latest forecast suggests that the BJP may not reach the 272-seat majority mark, potentially falling to as low as 230 seats if the anti-incumbency factor plays a significant role.
In a recent interview, Yogendra Yadav predicted that the BJP could win between 230 and 250 seats. He also estimated that the party’s allies might secure between 35 and 40 seats. “If the BJP manages only 230 seats, it won’t reach the majority mark of 272 even with its allies,” Yogendra Yadav stated.
Reacting to Yogendra Yadav’s predictions, Shashi Tharoor tweeted, “Fascinating: @YogendraYadav has revised his earlier estimates and now says that the BJP will definitely fall short of 272. He tells Karan Thapar that the BJP could go down to 250, but if the undercurrent is strong it could even fall further to 230. Mr. Yogendra Yadav says he expects the rest of the NDA to win between 35 to 40 seats. This means that if the BJP were to fall as low as 230 it will not be able, even with the support of the rest of the NDA, to reach the 272 majority mark. Interesting times ahead!”
During the interview, Yogendra Yadav also predicted that the Congress could improve its 2019 performance, potentially reaching between 90 and 120 seats. “Congress is much likely to do better than last time. They were 52. I would imagine something like at least 90 to 100 seats. In the other scenario of a strong undercurrent against BJP, it could go up to 120 seats,” Yogendra Yadav said.
Earlier, Yogendra Yadav had predicted that the BJP alone wouldn’t surpass 260 seats and might find it “impossible” to exceed 300 seats. His forecast suggested that the BJP could fall below 275 or even 250 seats. He also anticipated that the Congress would win 85 to 100 seats, with its INDIA bloc allies securing another 120 to 135 seats, totaling 205 to 235 seats for the Opposition-led alliance.
Political analyst Prashant Kishor has also weighed in, predicting that the BJP will repeat its 2019 Lok Sabha performance but will not exceed 370 seats. In a recent interview, Prashant Kishor cited Yogendra Yadav to support his forecast and stood firm on his prediction of the BJP scoring around 300 seats in the Lok Sabha polls. Prashant Kishor, in a viral video of a heated exchange with a journalist, defended his track record and advised detractors to “stay hydrated” and “keep plenty of water handy on June 4,” the day of the vote counting.
