Bangalore: Worried about the growing influence of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in urban areas of Karnataka after capturing power in the assembly elections in New Delhi, top RSS leaders are reaching out to organizations such as Bangalore Political Action Committee (BPAC) in order to minimize the damage to BJP's prospects in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.
During an hour-long closed door meeting here on January 12, top RSS leader Dattatreya Hosabale and two senior Pracharks quizzed BPAC vice president T.V. Mohandas Pai on the possibility of his entry into the Lok Sabha poll fray along with personalities such as the pioneer of low-cost airlines Captain G.R. Gopinath and former CFO of Infosys Technologies Ltd, V Balakrishnan who quit the company recently.
They reportedly tried to placate Pai and his team and persuade them from either contesting the general elections or extending support to AAP candidates, according to top sources in BJP.
The sources said since the office bearers of (BPAC) were advocating clean politics, good governance and the need to improve the quality of infrastructure in Bangalore city, the RSS leaders wanted to figure out the action plan of the organization in the run-up to the coming elections.
They also wanted to gauge the impact of AAP on the electorate in Bangalore city and other urban areas of Karnataka and potential parliament candidates of that party. Besides, they sought details on whether Balakrishnan and Captain Gopinath would contest the polls on AAP tickets in Bangalore.
Finally, the RSS leaders sought a feed back on the performance of three BJP MPs of Bangalore, but learnt that BPAC was upset with their poor performance.
They sought inputs from BPAC on selection of candidates with a clean image and on how to deliver good governance. Pai, however, categorically told RSS leaders that he would not contest the Lok Sabha elections from any party nor offer any assurance on backing the BJP in Lok Sabha elections.
When contacted, Pai denied that he met RSS leaders regarding Lok Sabha polls. "I have not held any meeting with RSS leaders", Pai told Deccan Chronicle when contacted. Dattatreya Hosabale was not available for comments.
