Picture of confidence

On Friday, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah held a press conference to talk about the achievements of the three years of Narendra Modi government. It was a well attended press conference, and had its share of print, digital and electronic media journalists, as also dozens of photographers. Midway into the press conference, Shah paused to take off his glasses and wipe the sweat off his face with his handkerchief. The shutterbugs went berserk and the hall was filled with sound of vigorous clicks of still cameras. Not one to miss a chance for a repartee, Shah quipped that his party was unlikely to give media the opportunity to use the photograph as it’s unlikely to lose any elections in the near future. Since the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP has lost only two assembly polls in what is considered its traditionally strong area of northern India. These were in Delhi and Bihar in 2015. The other losses have come in states like West Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu where the BJP has been a marginal player.