The Hindu : BJP to focus on three-point poll `mantra'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Feb 14, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

BJP to focus on three-point poll `mantra'

By Our Special Correspondent

TIRUPATI. Feb. 13. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president, M. Venkaiah Naidu, on Friday said that the three major points on which the party's campaign for the upcoming Lok Sabha and Assembly elections should veer around are -- Atalji, Development and Bharat.

"That should be our `mantra' and let us not be shy to chant it repeatedly to drive home the point that the country owed its present development to the Vajpayee Government," he said while inaugurating the party's State executive meeting at Tirupati.

More than 200 delegates including the Union Ministers - Bandaru Dattatreya and U. V. Krishnam Raju -- and the party's national secretary and in-charge for Andhra Pradesh, L. Ganesan, attended. Though described as a routine state executive meet it almost turned out to be a strategy session for the elections.

Even during his inaugural address, Mr. Naidu broadly touched upon the `flourishing' BJP-TDP alliance both at the State and the national level and underscored the need to continue the seat sharing arrangement between them for the coming elections to further consolidate their electoral gains. He even hinted at a joint campaign if need be and said that the seat sharing exercise would be on the basis of a `realistic assessment' of their mutual strengths hinting about the BJP's intentions to stake claim for few more seats, both for the Lok Sabha and the Assembly.

He said detailed negotiations would be held with the TDP shortly. He urged party cadres not to `create a scene' if denied a ticket as it would be done purely on the basis of the candidate's winning chances. He said the endeavour should be to improve the party's tally over the last election when it won seven Lok Sabha and 12 Assembly seats. He also wanted the cadre not to indulge in anything that would upset their poll ally -- the TDP.

Mr. Naidu highlighted the points, which the cadre should focus on during campaigning, adding that they should not hesitate to parrot the BJP's `feel good' factor and the `India shining' mantra. He wanted the cadres to fan into the villages and tell voters about the `substantial development' the Vajpayee Government had shown.

He said the `feel good' slogan was to project the sea change in the country's overall image among the comity of nations. The BJP was not trying to take entire credit for the NDA's achievement, but it was the result of `collective wisdom' and `joint effort' by all the NDA partners, he added.

The party's State president, N. Indrasena Reddy, the former party president, Bangaru Lakshman, the Tirupati MP, N. Venkataswamy, and others were present.

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