Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Nerves in BJP over vote margins in Karnataka?

Bengaluru: The BJP, whose Lok Sabha candidates in Karnataka have a nail-biting wait until June 4 for the poll results, is nervous about vote margins, an aspect that came up for discussion at an internal party meet on Saturday. 

That the Congress may narrow the gap was reported by office-bearers from some districts who attended a review meeting of the two-phased Lok Sabha election in Karnataka. The state went to polls on April 26 and May 7. 

"No one in the meeting expressed fear of losing in any constituency. But there may be a difference in margins compared to the 2019 polls," BJP general secretary V Sunil Kumar, convenor of the party election management committee, said at a news conference after the meeting. 

Congress is believed to have given the BJP a run for its money in Karnataka, where the saffron party swept in 2019, winning 25 of the 28 seats. 

BJP's average victory margin was 1.75 lakh votes and Congress will need a big swing to cover the gap. This, Congress believes, will come from beneficiaries of its guarantees, especially women.

In the meeting, BJP leaders from Chamarajanagar, Davangere and Bidar Lok Sabha segments came with reports of a good fight from Congress, which could result in a photo finish, sources said. 

According to a senior BJP leader who attended the meeting, office-bearers who were involved in election management, came with reports that while Congress would close the gap in some seats, the margin may be even higher than 2019 in a few other segments. 

"In all, it was a confident election for us," Kumar said, "And we are enthused about winning all the 28 seats."

In the run-up to the polls, the BJP held over 650 public meetings and 180 roadshows. The BJP is especially proud that 60,000 meetings, each one comprising 50-75 voters, were held at the booth-level. 

Earlier this week, Hindutva ideologue Chakravarthy Sulibele publicly congratulated Congress for outdoing the BJP in terms of on-ground presence in Karnataka, a sign that the BJP faces a fight. 

Dr Praveen Patil, founder of electoral analysis firm 5Forty3 Datalabs, tweeted a red flag for the BJP in Karnataka. "Congress money distribution was perfectly planned and executed, while BJP MPs were just waiting silently for the Modi wave to propel them to victory," he wrote, and added: "Advisory: these are just random notes. Don't read result tea leaves in them (sic)."