Union Minister and Republican Party of India chief Ramdas Athawale augured his ally Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) win the upcoming 2019 general elections, however, adding that the ruling party might lose “30-40” seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, reported PTI. He even claimed that he can arrange a meeting between the PM and Patidar leader Hardik Patel.
“The BJP’s tally may go down by 30-40 seats but the NDA will return to power,” said Athawale.
Union Minister of state for social justice and empowerment also offered his help by becoming a mediator between Patidar leader Hardik Patel and the BJP in Gujarat, to settle upon the issue of reservation.
Patel is on an indefinite hunger strike demanding reservations for the Patidar community in education and government jobs.
Union Minister Athawale cautioned his ally BJP that if the Patidar agitation is not resolved in time, it can lead to loss of two to three Lok Sabha seats for the BJP in Gujarat. He said, “Since Patidars turned against the ruling party, the BJP lost around 15-20 seats in the last Gujarat elections. If the situation persists, the BJP may lose two-three Lok Sabha seats in 2019.”
He added, “I will try to talk to Hardik over the phone to convince him. Only talks can resolve this issue. I am also ready to become a mediator between him and the BJP at the Centre. If he agrees, I will take him to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss this issue.”
PTI quoted the Union Minister as saying, “I once told Hardik that he can get the desired results if he remains by the BJP’s side. I told him that he will not get anything by joining hands with the Congress. I think he needs to talk to BJP leaders to resolve this issue.”
Speaking in favor of the reservation for the communities which fall under the general category like Patidars in Gujarat, Marathas in Maharashtra and Jats in Haryana, he said they deserve reservations.
“Since there is a cap of 50 percent (on reservations), Parliament needs to first amend the Constitution to allow an additional quota of 25 percent. We can exclude those who earn over Rs 8 lakh. I even suggested this to the prime minister in a meeting of NDA allies,” Athawale told the reporters.