BHOPAL, 28 April 2004 — Following the not-too-happy trends of the exit polls that emerged after the second phase of parliamentary elections on Monday, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Madhya Pradesh has been forced on the back foot. These earlier indications are bound to have their impact in Madhya Pradesh which is going to polls in two phases on May 5 and 10.
After a massive victory in the December 2003 assembly elections, the BJP was considering a cake-walk in Madhya Pradesh but now in view of the new ground realities it has decided to throw its entire weight in the state. The new strategy is to offset the loss of Uttar Pradesh by gaining seats in Madhya Pradesh.
The BJP which was claiming to capture 28 seats, out of total 29 Lok Sabha seats, now feels that it would have tough time in retaining its existing 21 seats.
