Poll strategist Prashant Kishor, who has worked closely with the BJP in its successful 2014 election campaign and several other political parties since then, predicts he doesn’t see the Congress party getting 100 seats or more in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

In an exclusive interview with Navika Kumar, Group Editor-in-Chief, Times Now and Times Now Navbharat, Kishor added that the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra led by Congress’ Rahul Gandhi will not have much of an electoral impact and that the BJP is likely to witness significant gains in the eastern part of the country, particularly West Bengal, and also in Tamil Nadu where, he believes, the party’s vote-share this time may grow to double-digits.

Kishor made these claims while interacting with Kumar in the inaugural edition of a poll-related new show, ‘Public Manch’, before an audience comprising hundreds of students at the Sri Ram College of Commerce in Delhi University, a press statement from the Times Now said.

This interaction aired on Times Now Navbharat at 8 pm and Times Now at 9 pm on February 23. The network will be taking ‘Public Manch’ with Kumar to different cities across India during the 2024 Lok Sabha election campaign to have members of the public interact directly with the who’s who of Indian politics and seek answers to the pressing questions that could decide the outcome of the largest democratic exercise in the world, the media statement from the Times Now added.

Starting from Bihar, Bengal, Odisha, Andhra, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, hold me to this statement. In East and South (India), BJP’s cumulative number, compared to 2019 (there are 220 Lok Sabha seats here), will increase, Kishor told Kumar.

“BJP is trying to expand its base in East and South (India). In Telangana, they have 14 percent vote share. I see that voting percent going up in favour of BJP. Another State which isn’t being followed from BJP’s point that closely is Tamil Nadu. I see in Tamil Nadu, probably for the first time, BJP will break into double digit vote share,” Kishor was quoted as saying in the Times Now press release.

As for the Congress, Kishor said, “I do not see any material upside to the Congress number, what exists today. For material change, Congress will have to cross 100, but I don’t see it happening and it looks very difficult right now.”

Kishor questioned the timing of Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. “Since Congress is being run by Gandhi, he’s the Congress leader…I.N.D.I.A can’t take big decisions without him. When he’s supposed to be in the headquarters, to fix alliances, to be part of negotiations, to work on narratives, to decide on seats and tickets, on resources…instead of doing this, he’s travelling in Manipur and Nagaland and in Bihar. I think both strategically and tactically, it’s a wrong move in terms of timing,” he explained.

Kishor also said that it is unlikely the BJP will meet its target of 370 seats. “BJP has set this 370 target for its karyakartas. People shouldn’t consider this 370 target as the truth. Every leader has the right to set targets. If they achieve it, it’s great, if they don’t, then the party should be humble enough to accept their mistake. After 2014, there have been 8-9 polls, where BJP didn’t achieve its set targets.

“The possibility of the BJP winning 370 seats on its own is next to zero and if this does happen, I’ll be very surprised,” he observed.

Kishor had worked with the TMC during the 2021 Assembly elections in West Bengal and in an interview with Kumar on ‘Frankly Speaking; then had predicted the BJP will not get into three-figures in the State. He was proven right as Mamata Banerjee won the elections comfortably, but in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls Kishor acknowledged he does not see the BJP falling below its 2019 tally of 18 seats out of 42 and it is not just because of the sense of outrage against the ruling government in West Bengal over the turn of events in Sandeshkhali where TMC strongman Sheikh Shahjahan and his aides stand accused of serious crimes against women.

“No matter what one claims, when an incident like Sandeshkhali takes place, it will definitely hurt the ruling party,” Kishor said.

He added: “With or without Sandeshkhali, BJP has been on an upsurge in Bengal. Make no mistake, lot of people in Delhi think BJP is finished in Bengal, but the BJP is a very strong political force in Bengal. And with the increasing anti-incumbency against TMC — they’ve been there for 12-13 years — TMC will find it increasingly difficult to safeguard their territory. So to that extent, I don’t see BJP going down below what they got in 2019. I think, BJP will get very good numbers in West Bengal.”

Kishor also spoke about various leaders within the INDIA bloc and whether they were in a position to challenge Prime Minister Narendra Modi.