"Opposition's false narrative against BJP's '400 paar' slogan..." says Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde

Jun 12, 2024

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], June 12 : Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has accused the opposition of weaving false narratives against BJP's '400 paar' slogan, which he said contributed to the electoral setback faced by National Democratic Alliance in Maharashtra and some other places in the country in the recent parliamentary elections.
"We had to suffer losses in some places because a false narrative was set up against us. In Maharashtra as well we suffered losses. The constitution will be charged and reservation will be abolished, false narratives like this propagated and because of the '400 paar' slogan, people began doubting us and believing in the false narratives," said Shinde.
"PM Narendra Modi has dedicated his life to the country. He is the only PM in the country who hasn't taken a leave in 10 years," he said.
Leader of NDA ally, JD(U) KC Tyagi also made a similar statement stating, "400 paar slogan raised by us was grossly misused by the opposition parties by associating it with changing the constitution."
Notably, during the Lok Sabha election campaigning BJP used the slogan of 'Abki baar 400 paar' to appeal for mandate from the voters, which would help the party notch up a tally of over 400 seats in the 543-seat Lok Sabha.
The BJP won 240 seats in the Lok Sabha elections, down from its earlier tally of 303 seats in the 2019 polls.
In Maharashtra, the overall performance of the BJP saw a dip from the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, when it had gained nine seats against 23 in 2019.
The total tally of the Maha Vikas Aghadi stood at 17, with that of the Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) (Ajit Pawar) being seven and one respectively.
The Congress, on the other hand, marginally improved its seat share by securing 13 seats in the state. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has secured a third term, along with the support of other parties in the coalition, primarily -- the Nitish Kumar-led JD(U) and the Chandrababu Naidu-led TDP.
The BJP fell 32 seats short of the 272 majority mark after votes polled in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections were counted. For the first time, since the BJP swept to power in 2014, it did not secure a majority on its own.