The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : BJP kicks off election campaign in Karnataka

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Sunday, Mar 15, 2009
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

BJP kicks off election campaign in Karnataka

Special Correspondent

BANGALORE: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday formally commenced its campaign in Karnataka for the Lok Sabha election by opening a State election office in Bangalore.

The party leaders declared that they would win a minimum of 22 seats in Karnataka.

Show of unity

They put up a show of unity with party general secretary H.N. Ananth Kumar, who was reportedly upset over Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa’s son being fielded from the Shimoga Lok Sabha Constituency, making an appearance along with Mr. Yeddyurappa and other senior leaders at a procession taken out from a temple to the new election office. The BJP kicked off its campaign by launching an attack on the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and the newly formed Third Front. Accusing the UPA of meting out step-motherly treatment to Karnataka and ignoring its development, Mr. Yeddyurappa said he would come out with a “charge sheet” containing statistics regarding “discrimination” by the UPA against Karnataka.

He called upon party workers to ensure that the booklets regarding this reached every household in the State.

The Chief Minister claimed that there was a BJP wave in the State. Mr. Yeddyurappa declared that Karnataka would elect the highest number of BJP MPs in the country in a bid to play a significant role in making senior party leader L. K. Advani the Prime Minister.

He admitted that the allegations by the Opposition that there was power shortage, some roads were in bad shape and that Dalits had not got all the benefits under the welfare schemes were true. But he charged the Opposition Congress, which had ruled the State for a long time, of being responsible for such lapses. “I have taken over as Chief Minister only now. How can I become responsible for these problems which have cropped up owing to the failures of successive governments. But I will own up to the responsibility if these problems still persist when my government completes its term,” he said and remarked that he would change the very picture of Bangalore within 18 months by taking up a series of development projects.

Former national president of the party M. Venkaiah Naidu, who inaugurated the election office, termed the Third Front a “temporary parking” place for some leaders till the Lok Sabha elections were on. He said that the forum lacked credibility and leadership.

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