The saffron surge in electoral battle for 2019 has set the ball rolling to the Bharatiya Janata Party to capture more seats in Upper House of Parliament and the saffron party may get majority in Rajya Sabha in 2020.
BJP sources said closer calculation at permutation-combination suggests, by end of 2020 the ruling party will get at least 19 seats from important states such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
“Maximum seats would come from UP. But the saffron party will get seats from Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh also,” a source said.
In last 15 years, no ruling combine on its own has crossed the 123 (50 per cent mark of total Rajya Sabha strength). If things go as of now- NDA will cross 125 seats mark.
Lately, BJP and NDA have crossed 100 members mark. Besides NDA constituents, the support of nominated members such as Mary Kom and Swapan Dasgupta have taken NDA tally to 106.
BJP strategists and floor managers in Rajya Sabha held a meeting with BJP chief Amit Shah after the poll results and geared up to push for early passage of controversial draft laws such as Triple Talaq, Citizens Amendment Bill and a new motor vehicle law.
During first four years between 2014-18, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s regime faced immense problems in the running of Rajya Sabha and more than once had to withdraw the draft laws and other legislative steps.
It came to somewhat respectable position only in 2017 and 2018 after BJP gained some numbers and M. Venkaiah Naidu became vice president and chairman of the Upper House.
The BJP floor managers have also taken into consideration if the Congress government in Madhya Pradesh and JD(S)-Congress regimes survive in Karnataka, the saffron party will have to part away with some seats in Upper House from states like Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.
The Congress stormed to power in these three states in December 2018. Sources said the BJP and NDA can gain at least three seats from Assam. One of them may have to be given to Ram Vilas Paswan of LJP in June 2019.
Even as AIADMK-BJP alliance could not leave any mark in just concluded parliamentary polls, the parties will make gain of six Rajya Sabha berths.
The BJP may win over at least two Rajya Sabha MPs from Rajasthan and if some adjustments is made with Naveen Patnaik-led Biju Janata Dal there may be increase of one seat. The NDA is eyeing a Rajya Sabha berth each from Karnataka, Mizoram, Uttarakhand and Meghalaya.
As they say, task of political class or for that matter the backroom strategists can hardly be over with one very big success.
Leaving Lok Sabha elections success tale, some BJP leaders are already on the job on Rajya Sabha management and the arithmetic of numbers around it. A few senior leaders such as Sushma Swaraj, who did not contest parliamentary elections, but may be included in the cabinet will also have to be accommodated, sources said. (UNI)
