Nadda hails Modi's leadership for BJP's big rise, says will score hat trick

BJP president J P Nadda on Saturday underlined the party's meteoric rise since Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office and lauded his leadership in the past decade that has been full of new achievements for the organisation.

The Modi government will score a hat-trick and retain power for a third straight term after the Lok Sabha polls, expected in April-May, he told nearly 11,500 party delegates who have assembled at Bharat Mandapam here for the two-day national convention.

"We have to cross 370 seats and the NDA has to cross 400," he said in his inaugural address, exhorting party members to put all their energy in achieving the target so that the party breaks its previous records.

Thousands of party delegates from across the country rose to cheer Modi when Nadda made a mention of the women's reservation law and the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya while citing the highlights of the prime minister's tenure.

In his speech, Nadda noted that the BJP ruled only around five states before Modi's rise in 2014 and it is in power in 12 states now. The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is in power in 17 states, he said.

The BJP retained power for a second term in Uttar Pradesh with a big win in 2022, broke the trend of incumbent party being voted out in Uttarakhand and recently won assembly elections in three states -- Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan --when many thought it improbable, he said.

In West Bengal, the BJP has risen from 10 per cent votes and three seats to 38.5 per cent votes and 77 seats in the 2021 assembly polls, he said, asserting that the party will come to power in the state next time.

The party stormed to power in many northeastern states, including Assam, for the first time and doubled its vote share in Telangana, he said.

"Lotus (BJP poll symbol) is everywhere. It is a pan-India party," Nadda said, rubbishing the contention that the party's presence has been limited in south India.

It has 29 Lok Sabha and eight Rajya Sabha MPs from the region against the corresponding numbers of 28 and seven of the Congress, he said.