Upbeat after the massive mandate in Uttar Pradesh, the BJP president is now pursuing "Mission 150" in his home state, a feat no party or leader has been able to achieve in Gujarat. Madhavsinh Solanki, a four-time Congress chief minister, came the closest - under his leadership, the party won 149 seats in the 1985 elections.
Shah, who continues to be a member of the Gujarat Assembly, wants to break this record when the state goes to the polls at the end of this year.
Addressing party workers in Ahmedabad on Wednesday, Shah sought to justify the target by saying that when Modi was chief minister, the BJP's best was 128 seats but now that he is the Prime Minister, "they (workers) need to gift him a bigger victory".
ALSO READ: Uttar Pradesh: Meat traders end strike after meeting CM Adityanath
"When Modiji was chief minister of Gujarat, the party had won 128 seats (in 2002). Today, he is the Prime minister and so winning 150 or more seats should be our target." Shah referred to Uttar Pradesh and said while the target there was 300 of the 403 seats, the BJP ended up winning 325.
Party insiders said Shah was eyeing a Gujarat record also to stamp his authority over the state. Sources said Shah had aspired to be chief minister but was coaxed by Modi to make a mark on the national stage as BJP president. He had been Modi's chief election manager during his Gujarat stint.
Vijay Rupani, who succeeded Modi's choice Anandiben Patel as chief minister last year, is believed to have been hand-picked by Shah. Most BJP leaders, including Modi, had favoured Nitin Patel but Shah prevailed on everyone to settle for the low-key Rupani. Now, Shah wants to ensure that the BJP returns to power in the state under the leader of his choice, sources said.
Some BJP leaders feel, however, that "Mission 150" will be a tough task, given strong anti-incumbency against the government. The BJP has continued to rule the state uninterrupted since 1995, riding on the support of the Patels. But the Patels, after having stuck with the BJP for more than three decades, appear aggrieved now amid fears that Hardik Patel, who led the quota agitation for the community, has ruptured the ruling party's support base.
Shah, however, is looking to ride the wave generated after the Uttar Pradesh landslide. Sources close to him said he was also counting on a four-cornered contest - BJP, Congress, AAP and the Nitish Kumar-led JDU - that could split anti-incumbency votes. Hardik is rumoured to be a possible JDU candidate.
The BJP has so far won Gujarat by bringing the wider backward and upper castes on one platform. Shah replicated the model in Uttar Pradesh in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and in the recent state elections. If he manages to repeat it in Gujarat, it would reaffirm him as the most influential leader in the BJP after Modi.
-The Telegraph, Calcutta