Union Home Minister Amit Shah is likely to formulate the party's strategy for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls during his meetings with the state leadership on Sunday, Karnataka BJP chief B Y Vijayendra said. He also said the meeting is likely to discuss facing the polls together with alliance partner JD(S), with proper coordination between workers and leaders of both parties at the ground level and may also deliberate on the number of seats to be given to the regional party.
Shah arrived in the "palace city" early today and is scheduled to take part in meetings with state BJP core committee members and leaders of the party's Mysuru cluster later in the day. He is also expected to visit Sutturu near here to attend Sutturu Jathra (fair) and visit Chamundeshwari temple on Chamundi hills.
"The meeting will see participation of 120 leaders from Mysuru, Mandya, Hassan and Chamarajanagar Lok Sabha constituencies. Also there is a meeting with state BJP core committee, where discussions will be held on the strategy for upcoming Lok Sabha polls," Vijayendra said.
Addressing reporters here, he said, as BJP and JD(S) will be facing the election together, it has to be ensured that there are no issues between the workers of both parties at the ground level, and the meeting will focus on this too. "We will strategise with an aim to win each constituency and seek the guidance of Amit Shah, who is known as election Chanakya," he added. The BJP and JD(S) have forged an alliance and decided to fight the upcoming general elections together in Karnataka. Seat sharing parleys are on between the two parties.
BJP had won 26 of the total 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka, including Sumalatha Ambareesh, an independent supported by the party from Mandya, in the 2019 polls. The Congress and the JD(S) had secured one seat each. To a question regarding the first such meeting of the BJP ahead of Lok Sabha polls being held in Mysuru, which is the home district of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, the state BJP chief said there is nothing special about it, and the BJP and JD(S) are strategising to win all the constituencies in the state.
"Other than being Chief Minister's home district, it (Mysuru) is the stronghold of BJP, as people have been supporting the party in the Lok Sabha polls...in Chamarajanagara constituency, we will have to find a new candidate with senior leader Srinivas Prasad (sitting MP) announcing political retirement and strategise to win the seat," he said.
"In Mandya, under changed circumstances, we have heard discussions in the media about JD(S) asking for the seat, but no official discussions have taken place, all this will be discussed in today's meetings," he added. Asked about Sumalatha Ambareesh pitching for Mandya seat and what would be the party decision on the matter, Vijayendra said the Delhi leadership of the party will take a call.
"Discussions are on in Delhi, we don't have information about it and what's on the mind of the party's national president (J P Nadda)," he said. Sumalatha Ambareesh had recently called on Nadda, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior BJP leaders in Delhi. Hitting out at Congress for organising "My Tax, My Right" campaign alleging injustice by the central government in tax devolution and grants to the state, during Shah's visit, Vijayendra alleged that it was being done to 'cover up' the state Congress government's failures."
(With inputs from PTI)
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