MOdI BRINGS LIfE TO KARNATAKA POLLS
Crowds at the rally venues enthused the BJP workers who were missing the PM’s presence.
assets.
Modi also exposed the claims of Siddaramaiah. “Congress is trying to fool the people of Karnataka with its manifesto. In 2013, the Congress had promised to build one super speciality hospital in every district. But in 2018, this got changed to one super speciality hospital for every three districts,” the Prime Minister said at his Bengaluru rally.
In a whirlwind tour of the state, with rallies scheduled every alternate day, the crowds at the rally venues enthused the party workers who had been missing the absence of the Prime Minister from the campaign. True to his style, Modi played the final days of the campaign akin to the IPL match.
Leading the BJP team, the Prime Minister covered Kalburgi, Bellary and Bengaluru in a day on Thursday, while covering Udupi, Chamrajnagar and Belgavi on Tuesday. A galaxy of Union ministers, including Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Smriti Irani, and Nirmala Sitharaman, have descended in different parts of the state.
Prime Minister Modi, who has emerged as the biggest star of the elections, didn’t disappoint his fans, supporters and party workers. Thousands descended at the Kengeri ven- ue on the outskirts of Bengaluru to listen to him. “We were concerned till such time Modiji didn’t enter the campaign, but now we are sure that he will swing it around and ensure that the BJP forms the government. His speech enthuses us to work harder,” said Balachandra Jain, a volunteer campaigner and office bearer of the Rajasthan Sangh. Balachandra Jain and his team of volunteers have dedicated the campaign period for BJP candidates, leaving their business aside for two weeks.
Enthusing the supporters and workers, Prime Minister Modi, after getting a pulse of the state through his interactions, came down on Rahul Gandhi. “Congress doesn’t respect the sacrifices of our soldiers. When our soldiers carried out surgical strikes, the Congress party questioned them. They kept on asking for proof of the strikes from me,” said PM Modi.
The survey pendulum swung t he other way around, with speculators, media and survey agencies giving the BJP an edge in the run-up to the polling day. While pollsters had been predicting a hung Assembly for the last few weeks, the clouds seemed to be clearing up. The hung Assembly situation, though hypothetical in na- ture, has brought the Janata Dal (Secular) to the centrestage of all debates. The question on every mind has been whether the BJP and the JDS would join hands to form a coalition government.
With the JDS keeping its cards close to its chest, the debate has only got more intense.
While most surveys have given the H.D. Deve Gowda led JDS a range of 40-50 seats, its role could be crucial in a hung Assembly scenario.
The BJP and Congress have traded charges and counter charges on who could align with the JDS. Former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy only added to the suspense by attacking Siddaramaiah and Yeddyurappa in the same breath. JDS state president H. D. Kumaraswamy said he would not be a “kingmaker” and instead people of the state would bless him as “king” in the 12 May polls. Speaking to The Sunday Guardian, he conceded that it was a “battle for survival” for his party. “I am asking people to give the party a chance as you have seen the performance of both the BJP and the Congress,” he said. The JDS is also hoping that the consolidation of the Vokkaliga vote, which is the mainstay of the party, would help it this time.