Lok Sabha Polls 2024: After being ousted from power in the 2023 Assembly polls, the BJP is going to kickstart its campaign with the arrival of PM Modi.
Bengaluru: In a high-stakes political development, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to kick-start the Lok Sabha election campaign for the Bhartiya Janata Party this upcoming Saturday, i.e., on March 18. The inaugural event of PM Modi will take place in Kalaburagi, which is called the’ home turf’ of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, who has represented the seat twice. Also, PM Modi is scheduled to deliver a keynote address at a huge public gathering at the N V Ground situated in the centre of the district, commencing at 2 PM local time.
Kharge, who had represented Kalaburagi (Gulbarga Lok Sabha segment) twice in the past, lost to the BJP’s Umesh Jadhav by a margin of 95,452 votes in the 2019 general elections here—the octogenarian leader’s first electoral loss in his political life spanning several decades. The BJP has once again fielded Jadhav from the segment.
Speculations are rife that the Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, who has the role of managing the party nationally and coordinating with the opposition INDIA bloc, may not contest the coming polls and instead, the Congress is likely to field his son-in-law, Radhakrishna Doddamani, a businessman who also manages educational institutions.
PM Modi To Visit Shivamogga On March 18
On March 18, PM Modi will be in Shivamogga, the home district of veteran BJP leader B S Yediyurappa, and is scheduled to address a huge public meeting at 2 PM. Yediyurappa’s son, B Y Raghavendra is the sitting MP from Shivamogga and has been re-nominated by the party. Yediyurappa’s other son, B Y Vijayendra, who represents Shikaripura assembly constituency in the district, is the state BJP president.
The BJP has announced candidates for 20 seats in the state, which has a total of 28 constituencies.
After being ousted from power by the Congress in the 2023 Assembly polls, the BJP is now making a strong bid to regain the lost ground in Karnataka.
BJP’s Past Record In Karnataka
The BJP won 25 out of a total of 28 seats in the previous elections and ensured the win of a party supported independent candidate in Mandya. The then-ruling Congress-JD (S) alliance had come a cropper, winning just one seat each.
It is a role reversal of sorts for JD(S), which joined the NDA last September and has forged an electoral alliance with the BJP. The regional party is expected to contest in three seats: Mandya, Hassan and Kolar.
Sharing details of Modi’s visit, state BJP General Secretary Sunil Kumar said on Wednesday that BJP National President J P Nadda, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath, and other leaders will visit different Lok Sabha constituencies for campaigning in the coming days.
Speaking about the party’s poll preparations, he said: “We have divided 28 Lok Sabha constituencies into eight clusters for Lok Sabha elections. Keeping in view the local political and geographical background, programmes and strategies are being worked out in those eight clusters.”
Several senior leaders, including Shah and Nadda, have already visited one of these clusters, Kumar said, adding that ‘workers’ conventions, well-wishers’ contacts have been made and election preparations are on in all eight clusters. In the second phase, large public meetings will be held.”
(With inputs from agencies)
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