With the Election commission announcing the poling dates for the 2019 general elections, various media organizations through opinion polls have taken the prime time slot to predict the mood of the Nation. While the latest opinion polls suggest huge inclination of the voters towards BJP and Narendra Modi, different state wise breakups also show different emerging trends.
Madhya Pradesh, where BJP lost the state elections towards the end of 2018 despite getting 47,827 votes more than the 15,595,153 votes which congress got. Various opinions polls suggest huge voter support for the BJP and Narendra Modi for the 2019 General elections in Madhya Pradesh.
Times Now-VMR survey suggests, BJP will win 23 out of the total 29 Lok Sabha seats in the state. Numbers by India TV-CNX Opinion poll also indicate 23 seats for BJP out of 29; ABP-Voter Survey also gave similar indication of BJP ahead on 23 seats.
The Newly elected Kamal Nath government after the marginal victory in the state elections has been on the back foot, be it UREA shortages in more than 18 districts or frequent Law and order issues. Experts relate the Kamal Nath government’s diminishing popularity to the renegation of polling promises, such as the unemployment allowance, and a deteriorating law and order situation in Madhya Pradesh. Prahalad Bandhavar a BJP leader from Mandsaur was shot dead in a cold blooded murder just days after Kamal Nath’s Government took over. A case of the kidnapping of 5 years old twin brothers form the town of Chitrakoot who were found dead and many other similar cases have exposed the deteriorating situation of Law and order in the state of Madhya Pradesh.
Over the deteriorating state of Law and Order in Madhya Pradesh, Amit shah , President of BJP attacked the Congress Government. “ Recently, Two children were abducted and murdered. No one (from the Government) went to wipe off the tears of their parents. Earlier, if something like this happened, Mama (shivraj singh chauhan) used to reach even before their parents did.”
Rattled by the diminishing popularity and in a move to appease the voters before model code of conduct kicks in, Kamal Nath’s Government has come up with seemingly desperate moves to turn the tide in favor of Congress. Namdev Tyagi aka Computer Baba by an order dated March 8, 2019, has been appointed as the chairman of Ma Narmada, Ma Kshipra and Ma Mandakini River Trust in a move to appease different different religious groups. The decision comes after Congress criticized the BJP government’s decision to accord MoS status to Computer Baba and four other spiritual and religious functionaries in April 2018.
Kamal Nath to further improve Congress’ prospects in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections by appeasing OBC and upper caste votes, which showed an identical vote share for both BJP and congress, announced an increase to 27% from the existing 14% in the OBC reservation and an implementation of a 10 % reservation for upper castes. Many Political experts have termed this as a move to make a dent into identical vote shares of OBC and upper caste votes from the 2018 assembly elections.
With just a few months left, the government which many would consider is in its honeymoon period, the barrage of populist decisions made by Kamal Nath are unprecedented. This can be seen as damage control to rectify the rapidly diminishing popularity of Kamal nath and Congress government in the state.