Sources close to the BJP headquarters in New Delhi pointed out on condition of anonymity an impression has been gaining momentum among the party’s high-ranking leaders that the party should seriously think of changing its prime-ministerial candidate for the ensuing Parliamentary elections to be held in April/May next year.

BJP announced Modi as the prime-ministerial candidate prior to the Lok Sabha polls in April, 2014 when he was the chief-minister of Gujarat. An unexpected ‘Modi wave’ swept through the country as the BJP rode to power by winning an unexpected tally of 300-plus seats on its own out of 544 seats at stake.

In all likelihood, Congress president Rahul Gandhi is likely to be announced formally as the party and the UPA’s candidate for the post of prime-minister ahead of the polls which are just 4-5 months away from now. Chances of Modi getting repeated as the prime-ministerial candidate are very slim, party’s top-brass concede, without wanting to be named.

After the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP has lost almost all the Parliamentary by-elections held in various parts of the country in general and in particular in the ‘Hindi belt’. Modi’s acts of demonetization and GST might go against the party; the petrol price hike (which seems perennial) might also wreck the BJP’s boat at the polls, it is feared. Nitin Gadkari, former party president and U.P. chief-minister Yogi Adityanath are the front-runners for being propped up as the prime-ministerial candidate.