Less than 100 seats! First survey report of BJP shocks leaders

Shyam Sundar Vattam | NT
Bengaluru

This could come as good news to Congress leaders eyeing power after the 2023 Assembly polls. A pre- poll survey reportedly done by the ruling BJP has shocked its leaders as it shows that the party may win less than 100 of the total 224 seats in the 2023 Assembly polls.

The BJP has set for itself an ambitious target of 150 seats so that it can have a comfortable number in the Assembly. Worried over the survey report, the BJP high command is learnt to have asked Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai to do whatever is possible to win at least 130 seats to retain power in Karnataka on the lines of the victory in Uttar Pradesh.

When Bommai took over as CM last year, then BJP National President Amit Shah had reposed a lot of hope in him assuming that he would lead the BJP to victory in the assembly polls with ease. But after 11 months, that hope is fast disappearing because of the repeated mistakes being committed by ministers and their 'non-operative' attitute vis-a-vis the CM which has upset the high command.

The CM for some reason, has been unable to crack the whip on erring ministers despite their public spats before the media.People of Karnataka are tired of the scams cropping up one after the other allegedly involving ministers and high-ranking officials and the visible inaction of Bommai in dealing with them.

The PSI recruitment scam has tarnished the image of the BJP government badly with new stories of irregularities coming to light almost every day. The alleged links of several ministers to the scam, the arrest of over 20 police officers including an officer of ADGP rank and the alleged involvement of KPSC non-official members (read BJP workers) have embarrassed the government in the public eye

The unsatisfactory handling of the scams and the callous replies to sensitive incidents like the gangrape in Mysuru, communal clashes in Shivamogga and Hubballi, the hijab and Halal meat rows and complaints of rampant corruption in the police department have seriously dented the party’s prospects.

A former senior minister admitted that the image of his party’s government has taken a severe beating in the last three years on various issues. People had expected a lot of good initiatives from the BJP but governance has not been impressive to say the least.

If B.S.Yediyurappa failed to deliver the goods due to the age factor, his successor has not been able to prove his mettle mainly due to the lack of cooperation and coordination among ministers. Besides infighting among senior ministers, another point of concern is the attitude of those who joined the BJP from the Congress and JD(S) in 2019 to bring down the Kumaraswamy government.

They now seem to be hardly bothered whether the BJP will retain power or not since their mission of becoming ministers has been achieved, said sources. Bommai’s failure to effectively address the problems of Bengaluru had also impacted the BJP and the electorate in the state capital with many of them considering shifting their preference from the saffron party to the Congress.

Sources said that if the government does not take corrective steps, the chances of the BJP returning to power look pretty bleak.