Amit Shah will focus on Karnataka to make it Congress mukt': Yeddyurappa

Bengaluru: State BJP president B.S. Yeddyurappa made it clear on Sunday that it will be a centralised campaign for the Assembly 2018 polls- with party president Amit Shah set to concentrate on Karnataka in the last round of the mission to make the country ‘Congress- free.’ “People are fed up with Congress governance (in Karnataka). The party will harp on three years of PM Narendra Modi’s governance in the run-up to the Assembly polls. Mr Shah will focus on Karnataka as this is the last major state that the Congress is in power now,” said Yeddyurappa, who is currently in Kolar as part of the Jana Samparka Abhiyan, wherein he has covered 71 Assembly constituencies, travelling over 8,690 km.

The former CM held SC/ST/OBC outreach programmes in Malur, Bangarpet and Bethamangala Assembly constituencies in Kolar. Breathing fire against the Congress government, he charged that instead of hastening work on the Yetthinahole project, the government had only purchased pipes and collected commission! Refering to the political situation in Karnataka, he said it had drastically changed after the last two elections in 2013 and 2014. "When JD(S) did not keep its coalition commitment of handing over power to us in 2007, we were forced go to polls and came to power in 2008. In 2013, the BJP was divided into three parts (BJP, KJP and BSR Congress) which helped the Congress come to power. But, this time, we are united and people are looking for good governance on the lines of what Narendra Modi has provided," he said.

When asked about differences among party cadre, Yeddyurappa claimed that they had been ironed out. "Everyone has to work for the party, we are reaching out to all communities in the state. Unlike earlier years, the BJP has grown beyond Coastal, Malnad and Mumbai Karnataka regions. Apart from anti-incumbency of the Congress government, our inherent strength, along with our centralised campaign, will help us come to power," he added.