Lok Sabha Results: BJP Lost 92 Seats From Its 2019 Tally, But Scored Over 30 New Ones

In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP did not cross the majority mark on its own as the party secured 240 seats.

In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP did not cross the majority mark on its own as the party secured 240 seats.

Source : PTI

Election Results 2024: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led NDA bloc bagged 293 seats and crossed the majority mark of 272 seats in the Lok Sabha elections, which were held in seven phases from April 19 to June 1. The BJP, however, did not cross the majority mark on its own, as it managed to secure 240 seats.

The BJP, which formed governments at the Centre with majority in its previous two terms, had bagged 303 seats in the 2019 polls. Of the 303 seats won last time, the saffron party has lost 92 and managed to retain 208 in the 2024 polls. The other three seats were given to NDA allies Janata Dal (United), Janata Dal (Secular), and Rashtriya Lok Dal who won one seat each.

However, the saffron party, which saw a dent in its seat tally this time around, won 32 new seats in the 2024 polls. It is pertinent to mention that one of the major reasons behind the reduction in the saffron party’s seat tally is its poor show in Uttar Pradesh. In the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP emerged victorious with 71 and 62 seats, respectively. In the 2024 polls, the BJP’s seat tally in Uttar Pradesh was reduced significantly to 33.

Out of the 92 constituencies that the BJP lost, 29 were reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. The saffron party suffered its biggest loss in Uttar Pradesh, which accounted for 29 of these 92 seats.

The other states where the BJP suffered a major blow were Maharashtra and Rajasthan, where the party lost 16 and 10 seats, respectively. Besides, the saffron party also faced defeat in eight constituencies each in Karnataka and West Bengal.

The tally of the saffron party was reduced to half in Haryana, where the party lost five seats. It lost 5 seats in Bihar, 3 in Jharkhand, 2 in Punjab, and one each in Assam, Chandigarh, Daman & Diu, Gujarat, Ladakh (it was part of Jammu & Kashmir in 2019), and Manipur. The BJP lost 92 seats across 15 states and Union Territories.

Of the 92 seats the saffron party lost, 11 constituencies—Aurganabad, Dumka, Lohardaga, Gulbarga, Raichur, Gadchiroli-Chimur, Barmer, Karauli-Dholpur, Banda, Chandauli, and Fatehpur—were in the poorest districts of the country, according to an Indian Express report. The Congress wrested a maximum of 42 seats from the saffron party, which included 9 in Maharashtra, 8 in Rajasthan, and 4 in UP.

Small Dip In  BJP's Vote Share Led To Big Jolt

In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP's vote share took a marginal hit, going from 37.3% in 2019 to 36.6% this time around. Despite a minor dip in the vote share, the saffron party's seat tally dropped by 63 seats from 303 in 2019 to 240 in 2024, putting it way short of the majority mark.

On the flip side, the 2024 Lok Sabha polls were good for the Congress in terms of vote share. The grand old party received 21.2% of the votes in 2024, while in 2019, it garnered 19.5% of the votes. The increase in vote share was minor, but it was enough to see an increase in its seat tally from 52 to 99.