New Delhi: The BJP's central leadership has been focusing on 'Five Bs' in the upcoming Karnataka Assembly Elections. The 'Five Bs' — stands for Bagalkote, Belagavi, Bellary and Bidar districts, and both rural and urban districts of Bengaluru — refer to the pockets where the saffron party didn't perform well in the 2018 polls.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union home minister Amit Shah and BJP's national president JP Nadda have been frequently visiting the state to uplift the party and fight the anti-incumbency factors. According to sources, the right wing party top brass from New Delhi are busy working out strategies to consolidate its position in these six districts, spread across Karnataka.
In many of these districts, the BJP's performance was a poor show except in Bagalkote and Belagavi. In 2018, the party won just 11 seats out of 32 in both the rural and urban areas of Bengaluru. It even failed to open its account in rural Bengaluru, which has four seats.
The party won just three out of nine seats in Bellary district and only one out of six seats in Bidar. The Hindutva party was able to bag just five out of seven in Bagalkot and secured 13 out of 18 seats in Belagavi. Sources said the BJP's top brass has been working on a strategy to increase its seat tally in these six districts, which will eventually help the party stay in power.
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"We are working to achieve the electoral success in the state assembly polls 2023. The party's national president JP Nadda has been touring the state and he will stay there for three days during which he would meet key stakeholders," a source close to the party top brass told ETV Bharat.
During the public outreach program, Nadda will be interacting with the voters from different sectors, local leaders and workers to get the firsthand feel of the voters. The 2023 is an important year for BJP because several states, including Karnataka will go to Assembly polls, and will be seen as a prelude to the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha Elections, the source added.