As the high voltage campaign for the May 10 Assembly elections in Karnataka came to an end with the three main political contestants — BJP, Congress and JD(S) — hoping to better their performance from the last 2018 assembly polls, BJP stalwart and former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Monday claimed that his party would return to power in Karnataka with 130 to 135 seats and Congress leader Siddaramaiah will lose the election from Varuna constituency.
As Congress Sate Chief D K Shiv Kumar predicted 141 seats its party and another of party’s top leader Siddaramaiah put the number to more than 145, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has maintained that his party would get “full majority “ in the state assembly.
The leaders from the BJP and the Congress have announced that there would be a clear-mandate for their respective party and not be a fractured verdict. The JDS, however, is suggesting that the elections could give a hung assembly – helping it to play a role of a ‘king-maker’ in the state. Yediyurrappa has put the BJP figure to touch 120-135 – higher than the simple majority of 113 in the 224 assembly.
The former CM also said V Somanna, the BJP candidate in Varuna assembly seat Varuna would emerge victorious against the Congress candidate Siddaramaiah .
“(V) Somanna (Minister and BJP candidate) will win the election in Varuna constituency. That’s also I wanted to convey to you because I had been there one or two days. Somanna has worked day and night and (former Chief Minister) Siddaramaiah is going to lose miserably in this election,” he told reporters Bengaluru after the end of the electioneering .
“I am telling you today that we are going to get a minimum of 130 to 135 seats. After the elections we are going to meet again. Whatever I said previously also had come true. Even now I am telling you that we are going to cross 130 to 135 seats and we are going to form the government,” the four-time Chief Minister said.
On why Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not spell out any achievements of the state government in any of his speeches, the state BJP strongman said the Centre released maximum grants to Karnataka and it’s the reason for Karnataka’s development.
“There was no need for him to repeat those works. The Prime Minister knows how Karnataka is treading on the development path,” he said.