Modiji Is Contesting From Every Seat In The Country

Amit Shah is a man on a mission.

- Pratul Sharma

Handling his biggest election campaign since he took over as BJP president in 2014, Shah has added another dimension to it with his decision to contest the Lok Sabha elections from Gandhinagar, a party stronghold which had elected Atal Bihari Vajpayee (1996) and L.K. Advani (1991, 1998-2014). The 2019 Lok Sabha elections hold deep political significance for not only Prime Minister Narendra Modi, but also Shah. Will he be the prime contender for the top post after Modi?

Shah is always on the move. As part of his hectic election campaign, he will address 135 rallies in 50 days. As Modi’s principal strategist, Shah has made national security the main poll plank for 2019.

A day after his show of strength in Gandhinagar—where he filed his nomination in the presence of several leaders of the National Democratic Alliance and two former BJP presidents—Shah returned to western Uttar Pradesh on March 31 for campaigning. Aboard his chartered flight from Ahmedabad to Delhi, Shah took stock of the previous day’s rally and discussed the progress of the selection of candidates with party general secretary Bhupendra Yadav and IT cell in-charge Amit Malviya. He also found time for an exclusive interview with THE WEEK, his first after filing his nomination. Shah spoke to Special Correspondent Pratul Sharma on issues ranging from the BJP’s electoral strategy, his ideological commitment and his relationship with Modi.

Edited excerpts:

Q/There is a lot of curiosity about your decision to contest the Lok Sabha elections, as you are already a member of the Rajya Sabha.

A/There is no big suspense. I have been an MLA for 25 years. I am a political worker who stays among the people. When my assembly term ended, there was no Lok Sabha election. So, I went to the Rajya Sabha. I wanted a direct mandate from the people to go to Parliament and the party agreed.