Tharoor Finds Yadav's Revised BJP Prediction "Fascinating"

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor expressed fascination over psephologist Yogendra Yadav's revised prediction that the BJP might not secure the 272 seats needed for a majority in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Tharoor's comments followed an interview where Yadav forecasted that the BJP might only win 250 seats, possibly dropping to 230 if anti-incumbency sentiments prevail. Yadav estimated that BJP's allies could win between 35 and 40 seats, which still wouldn’t be enough to reach the majority mark of 272.

“Fascinating: @YogendraYadav has revised his earlier estimates and now says that the BJP will definitely fall short of 272. He tells Karan Thapar that the BJP could go down to 250, but if the undercurrent is strong it could even fall further to 230. Mr. Yadav says he expects the rest of the NDA to win between 35 to 40 seats," Tharoor tweeted on Thursday.

"This means that if the BJP were to fall as low as 230, it will not be able, even with the support of the rest of the NDA, to reach the 272 majority mark. Interesting times ahead!" he added.

In the same interview, Yadav predicted that Congress could improve its performance from 2019, potentially winning between 90 and 120 seats if there is a strong undercurrent against the BJP.

Previously, Yadav had predicted that the BJP alone would struggle to surpass 260 seats and might fall below 275 or even 250 seats. He also suggested that the Congress and its INDIA bloc allies could collectively win between 205 and 235 seats.

Political analyst Prashant Kishor has also weighed in, predicting that while the BJP might replicate its 2019 performance, it won’t exceed 370 seats. Kishor has stood firm on his prediction, despite criticism, and advised detractors to "stay hydrated" for the vote-counting day on June 4.