Must win all 28 Lok Sabha seats: Amit Shah to BJP Karnataka unit

Union home minister Amit Shah on Sunday asked Karnataka's BJP unit that it must win all the 28 Lok Sabha seats in the upcoming elections with a 10% increase in the party's vote-share at each booth compared to 2019.

"The political environment across the country is favourable to the BJP. The state unit must work hard to convert Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity into votes with increased vote-share," Shah said at the strategy meetings he held in Mysuru with the BJP core committee leaders as well as with the cluster leaders of the Mysuru-Kodagu, Mandya, Hassan and Chamarajanagar Lok Sabha seats.

Shah's meeting to get the election preparations rolling comes amid chief minister Siddaramaiah and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president DK Shivakumar targeting to win 15-20 seats on the back of five-guarantees it has rolled out.


State BJP president BY Vijayendra said all the leaders have assured Shah that the BJP and JDS would fight the elections unitedly in all 28 constituencies and make 100% efforts to win all the seats.

The BJP is contesting the upcoming polls in alliance with the JDS, and the two parties are in talks to finalise a seat sharing deal. Sunday's meeting, Vijayendra added, did not discuss seat sharing between the two parties which would be finalised in Delhi.

Former BJP national general secretary CT Ravi said the BJP's tally in Karnataka was actually 27 seats, counting the lone JDS seat as belonging to the NDA and Mandya, anyway, having been won in 2019 with the backing of the BJP.

Congress Protest

Meanwhile, Congress workers staged a protest in Mysuru against the home minister's visit and the central government's delay in releasing drought relief to Karnataka. The party also organised a 'My Tax, My Right' campaign, alleging injustice by the central government in tax devolution and grants owed to the state.

Hitting out at the Congress for organising the protest during Shah's visit, Vijayendra alleged that it was being done to "cover up the state Congress government's failures".