Sharad Pawar predicts "BJP will lose 4 out of 5 state elections"; will only retain Assam

Hitting out at the BJP, NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Sunday claimed that barring Assam, the BJP will face defeat in four other poll-bound states and the election trend in the five states will give a new direction to the country. Pawar accused the Centre of misusing its power in poll-bound West Bengal, claiming that the entire state rallied around Mamata Banerjee. He predicted that BJP will retain power in Assam, but lose all other poll-bound states.

Pawar: BJP will lose 4 out of 5 states

"In West Bengal, the Centre, especially the BJP is misusing power and trying to attack Didi (referring to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee) who is trying to fight for the people of the state. The entire state has rallied around Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee since it is a matter of Bengali pride and self-respect. I have no doubt that the TMC will retain power under the leadership of Banerjee," said Pawar.

Talking about BJP's chances in South, he dismissed it putting faith in Pinarayi Vijayan and M K Stalin. "It is wrong to talk about results of the five states today as people of these states will take the decision. As far as Kerala is concerned, the Left parties and the NCP have come together and we are sure that we will get a clear- cut majority. In Tamil Nadu, people will support DMK and its chief M K Stalin, and they will come to power in the state after the polls," said Pawar to PTI.

Summing up, he said, "In nutshell, the BJP will retain power in Assam, but will face defeat in other poll-bound states, and other political parties in those states will come to power. I am confident this trend will give a new direction to the country." The saffron party is currently tirelessly campaigning in Kerala, Assam and Bengal where it faces off the Left, Congress and Trinamool respectively. While Puducherry is currently under President's rule, BJP relies on AIADMK to retain Tamil Nadu. Poll results are on May 2.

Pawar is the mastermind behind the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra, which allied together to keep the BJP out of power. Prior to the 2019 Maharashtra state polls, Shiv Sena had reiterated that it will accept only the 50:50 formula, while BJP denied ever having agreed to such a formula - resulting in a post-poll fallout of the saffron allies. With no respite to the deadlock, Sena allied with NCP-Congress to form the Maha Vikas Aghadi government, ushering in Uddhav Thackeray's maiden CM term.

(With PTI Inputs)