Amit Shah in Karnataka tomorrow

NEWDELHI: BJP chief Amit Shah will spend the last day of this year in poll-bound Karnataka, strategising with state party leaders, as they gear up to take on the ruling Congress in the Assembly election next year.

A party statement said Shah will first hold a meeting with all BJP MPs and MLAs in the state followed by a deliberation with the in-charges of all its assembly constituencies.

He will also chair meetings with the state’s core group leaders, district presidents of the party and in-charges among others.

The BJP is aiming to dislodge the Congress from the only big state, which sends 20 or more MPs to the Lok Sabha, it remains in power. The 224-seat assembly is likely to go to polls in May next year.

The Congress had captured power in the southern state in the last Assembly polls dethroning the BJP which was hit hard by a rebellion by B S Yeddyurappa, who had floated a party.

Yeddyurappa is back in the saffron fold and has been declared the BJP’s chief ministerial candidate. The Congress campaign is being led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

The Congress and the BJP had won 122 and 40 seats respectively in the last assembly polls.

Since the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Shah have got the better of the Congress a number of assembly elections.

However, the Congress hopes to do well in Karnataka after putting up a spirited fight against the BJP in Gujarat.