Kolkata: BJP has swept the polls in the assembly polls in four out of five states, including that of Uttar Pradesh. The saffron camp has already set the ball rolling for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi also showed confidence that BJP is all set to sweep the 2024 Lok Sabha polls as well. However, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has rubbished Modi's claims on this count on Friday.
Mamata said that the victory in the four states is not the true reflection of public sentiments and that the results are because of election machinery forgery by BJP. She made this comment on the premises of the West Bengal assembly, after the state finance minister, Chandrima Bhattacharya presented the state budget for the financial year 2022-23 in the assembly.
She said, "The party (BJP) should not raise its voice much just because they have won in a few states. This victory is not a true reflection of the people's mandate. Akhilesh Yadav (of the Samajwadi Party) has lost not because of people's mandate but due to election malpractices."
Earlier, Mamata Banerjee went to Uttar Pradesh twice to campaign for Samajwadi Party leader, Akhilesh Yadav. Although Samajwadi Party was able to improve its seat and vote percentage tally, the overall success rate was not satisfactory.
"I do not understand why forensic tests were not conducted even after incidences of EVM tampering in Uttar Pradesh. Akhilesh Yadav was defeated forcefully." The results are not the true reflection of the sentiments of the people of Uttar Pradesh. Rather the results are reflections of election malpractices there," Mamata Banerjee said.
She also said that Akhilesh Yadav should not be disheartened by the results. "BJP has become too confident in winning elections in a couple of states. But 2024 will be a tough year for them," she said. The chief minister also called for the unity of all -non-BJP and non- Congress parties. "We cannot rely on Congress," she further added.
Modi on Thursday said that the results of the recently concluded assembly elections give a clear indication of what is going to happen in 2024. Various charges against the country's ruling party and the rising fuel prices did not cut ice among the voters in these four states. However, the projects of the BJP-ruled state governments were successful in wooing the sentiments of the voters.
