2019 Lok Sabha election results: UP alone sends six Muslim MPs to Parliament, none from the BJP

Lucknow, May 24: The 17th Lok Sabha has finally taken shape as Narendra Modi-led NDA sealed a phenomenal electoral victory with 354 seats. After the counting of votes for 542 Lok Sabha seats, BJP finished with 303 seats in its kitty. Congress won only 52 seats, two less than it needs for a Leader of Opposition post in the lower house and marginally more than the 44 it got in the last general elections.

While the number of Muslim MPs in the Lok Sabha has increased to a decade high of 27, up from 23 last time, with a dozen of them winning from Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal even as none of the six Muslim candidates fielded by the BJP tasted victory.

The outgoing Lok Sabha had 23 Muslim MPs, many of whom were from the Congress and the Trinamool Congress.

The highest number of Muslim MPs in the Lok Sabha was in 1980, when 49 legislators from the community were elected, according to PTI.

Like in 2014, the Bharatiya Janata Party is the only winning party to not have a single Muslim MP. The party had fielded three Muslim candidates in Kashmir, two in West Bengal, and one in Lakshadweep. However, all six of them were defeated.

But the Muslim candidates fielded by SP-BSP alliance in UP performed much better than others who were given tickets by these parties with the exception of the Congress.

The SP got just five seats, three out of which were won by its Muslim nominees and another three won on BSP ticket.

Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, which have considerable Muslim population, have six candidates each from the community to the Lok Sabha. Kerala and Jammu & Kashmir have three Muslim MPs each while Assam and Bihar have two each. There is one MP each from the community from Punjab, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Lakshadweep and Telangana.