Bengaluru: BJP national president, Amit Shah declared his chief ministerial candidates for the 2018 Assembly elections as the state unit chief and former chief minister, B.S. Yeddyurappa on Saturday making it clear that he would stand for no dissidence from rival claimants even in the face of some unhappiness in the ranks over the role of BSY’s coterie.
Arriving at the airport to a near euphoric welcome, he addressed party workers at the BJP office in Malleswaram. Mr. Shah, who is here on a three day visit to bolster party unity and build it up from the booth level, said the party hoped to gain a foothold in south India by coming to power in Karnataka in the coming assembly polls and told party workers not to rest until they had removed the ‘corrupt’ Congress government in the state. ”My focus in Karnataka is not only on strengthening the party base, but also on removing the corrupt Congress government and installing a BJP government in its place in 2018,” he said, noting that since winning the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP had won one election after another in the country. “Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity has helped the party win many elections. In my three days here we will discuss preparations for the Assembly elections. Besides strengthening the party organisation from the booth level onwards, we will have to chalk out a plan for the coming poll,” Mr. Shah said, urging the party workers to fight unitedly to bring the BJP to power in the state.
Despite the dissidence simmering in the party, BJP leaders put up a show of unity before Mr Amit Shah both at the Kempegowda International Airport and the party office with senior leaders like Ananthkumar, K.S. Eshwarappa, D.V. Sadananda Gowda and R. Ashok holding up their hands in a victory sign before party workers in a gesture of solidarity on the occasion.
