New Delhi: In a major setback to the BJP in Ayodhya, the party lost its key Faizabad constituency within four months of the consecration of Ram Mandir by PM Modi.
While official result is yet to be announced, Lallu Singh, the BJP candidate who was seeking re-election for the third time from Ayodhya which is part of Faizabad, accepted his defeat and said that the party will introspect and will fight back.
While official result is yet to be announced, Lallu Singh, the BJP candidate who was seeking re-election for the third time, accepted his defeat and said that the party will introspect and will fight back.
"Hum aapka aur Ayodhya ka samman bacha nahi paaye. (We couldn't save the honour of Ayodhya) There could have been some fault in me. You worked very hard and showed full dedication towards the party. My only request is that it may happen that if you go out in the area, opposition leaders and workers may comment on us. But will have to show tolerance and avoid any unwarranted things. Yudh ke maidan me haar jeet toh laga rehta hai (You win some, you lose some in a battlefied)," said Singh, while addressing party workers at the election office in Ayodhya.
He further said, "I will introspect about myself. There could have been a reason that we lost this election. Despite Modi-Yogi leadership, this has happened, so there must be some major flaw in me. Go to your home now. Do not lose your heart.
The Ayodhya defeat is not only losing a single constituency but it is also seen as an ideological defeat for BJP as Prime Minister Narendra Modi performed a consecration ceremony just a few months before the election and it was propagated by him and other party leaders across the country as one of the biggest achievement of the party.
Slogans like "500 varshon baad Ram Lalla apne ghar me aaye hain" and "Jo Raam ko laaye hain hum unko laayenge" were frequently used in the BJP's rallies. The Ayodhya defeat is also reminiscent of the election held after the demolition of Babri Masjid in 1992.
After the Babri demolition, the Narasimha Rao government dismissed BJP governments in UP, along with Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Himachal Pradesh. In the 1993 election, SP-BSP formed an alliance. While BJP emerged the single largest party with one seat more than the SP-BSP, however, it was kept out of power as other non-BJP parties backed Mulayam.
The result has also inherent message that the 'Mandir alone' cannot work when there is a joblessness, paper leaks, rising inflation and local issues are not being addressed properly.
