Certainly this may be worrying the ruling BJP and these concerns can be read between the lines spoken by the party leadership. Talk to any BJP or RSS functionary. He will assure you of two things. One, the BJP will remain the single largest party and ‘Motabhai’ aka Amit Shah will manage all. But, after the fourth round of polling, this tone may change. BJP now not only needs to sweep the Purvanchal but also an escape velocity to get rid of the narratives set by the opposition.What about the fourth round? We can say that the voters in Lakhimpur Kheri, Sitapur and Rae Bareli have made a clear choice. They have favoured a change. In Lucknow, the fortress of BJP since AB Vajpayee, the party is stuck in neck to neck battle. In Fatehpur, and Banda, the saffron party was banking on a vote shift from the BSP but may have failed to get the required traction. The BJP looks confident in Lakhimpur Kheri sadar, Sewta, Hargaon, Hardoi, Sidhauli, Mishrikh, Unnao, Lucknow Cantt and Lucknow East. In Sarojini Nagar, and Lucknow Central there is a close fight. In Lucknow West, Malihabad, Bakshi ka Talab, and Mohanlalganj, Samajwadi voters are claiming a big victory for their party.We can say, a few things are going in favour of Samajwadi party. One, the party is being considered a default recipient of anti-incumbency votes by the electorate. The BSP has shown no contention for a fight. This has left its supporters among the Muslims, anti-BJP group of Brahmins, Kayastha and even some Rajputs with no choice but to vote for Samajwadi Party. Thirdly, the voters who are hardcore supporters of BJP but are devastated by the economic policies and pandemic mismanagement have decided to remain away from the polling booths. Regarding Lucknow, one more point needs to be mentioned. It is the first election when late Atal Bihari Vajpayee is neither on party posters nor in election campaigns. This means Muslims, specially the Shias of old Lucknow have had no major political figure to support the party which remains at opposite pole of ideology.
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