With a dented image, the ruling BJP in Karnataka is trying all possible ways to fight the May 5 Assembly elections to keep its position intact. In fact, the campaign managers of the BJP are getting Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi as its star campaigner to counter both the Congress and the Karnataka Janata Party led by lingayat strongman BS Yeddyurappa.
As the Opposition Congress, which is beaming with confidence to wrest power from the BJP, is planning to launch Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, the BJP managers are bringing NaMo to counter Rahul Gandhi in Karnataka.
A BJP source told The Pioneer that Narendra Modi will campaign for more than a week probably in two trips in the lingayat belt in the north Karnataka districts where Yeddyurappa is banking on dominant lingayat votes. He said, “No doubt, the BJP has to counter Rahul Gandhi and Yeddyurappa. We are bringing Narendra Modi as our star campaigner to counter both Rahul Gandhi and Yeddyurappa in North Karnataka districts and also in some urban centers like in Bangalore to lure youth. We have to just finalise his programme.”
A senior party functionary told The Pioneer that Modi will campaign in Karnataka from April 20 to May 1. According to him the central BJP election committee would meet on April 5 to finalise Modi campaign strategy in Karnataka. Apart from Modi , party patriarch lK Advani, party national president Rajnath Singh and host of other leaders will campaign in the State. The BJP hopes Modi’s campaign would some extent nullify Yeddyurappa effect in some of the lingayat dominant districts.
Meanwhile, a host of BJP national leaders, including lK Advani, Rajnath Singh, Sushma Swaraj, and Arun Jaitley among others, will arrive in Bangalore to address the public on April 8. Modi does not figure in this list. According to a senior BJP leader Modi would only attack Congress but not attack Yeddyurappa as a strategy. He said” Modi would only attack Congress. See what he did in Gujarat. He never attacked Keshubhai Patel in Gujarat.”
However the Congress even though might miss its star campaigner Priyanka Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi would come for campaign.
According to Professor Suresh Misra of the Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA), New Delhi Karnataka would become a testing ground for both Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and congress vice president Rahul Gandhi in the changing political scenario. He also says Karnataka assembly polls might become very decisive and witness a political polarisation at the national level might lead to early polls for the lok Sabha.
Professor Misra who extensively worked on Karnataka said, “I feel as the debate over supremacy of these leaders in their parties growing stronger and stronger both Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi will find Karnataka assembly polls a testing grounds to consolidate their positions”.