Gujarat booster for Karnataka BJP; Cong counters with Himachal

Congress urged BJP leaders in Karnataka to take a look at Himachal Pradesh results which are in the favour of the Grand Old Party.
BJP workers celebrate the party’s victory in the Gujarat polls at the party office in Bengaluru on Thursday | Vinod Kumar T
BJP workers celebrate the party’s victory in the Gujarat polls at the party office in Bengaluru on Thursday | Vinod Kumar T

BENGALURU: The BJP’s landslide victory in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state Gujarat seems to have given a big boost to the party leaders in Karnataka ahead of the 2023 Assembly elections. However, Opposition Congress and JDS leaders said Gujarat polls will not have any impact on Karnataka. Congress urged BJP leaders in Karnataka to take a look at Himachal Pradesh results which are in the favour of the Grand Old Party.

Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and many senior BJP leaders expressed confidence that Gujarat results will have a positive impact on the Karnataka elections. “It is a morale booster for workers and supporters in Karnataka. Working with much more enthusiasm will help the party to come back to power in the state,” Bommai told reporters in Bengaluru.

BJP workers celebrated the party’s victory in Gujarat by distributing sweets at the party office in Bengaluru. Bommai attributed the victory in Gujarat to PM Modi’s strong and positive leadership and good governance. “People will always support good governance and till recently there was an anti-incumbency trend all over the country but the Gujarat poll results have proved a pro-incumbency trend in favour of BJP. It is not easy to win for the seventh consecutive time,” he said.

On the party’s performance in the Delhi corporation elections, the CM said being in administration in a local body for 15 years is a big achievement as there will be plenty of problems in it. The voter number is small and there will be a multi-corner fight, so it cannot be compared with the general polls, he said.

Minister of Energy of Kannada and Culture V Sunil Kumar said the party respects the voters’ verdict in Himachal Pradesh and state and central leaders will introspect reasons for it. In Karnataka, the party will give importance to seniors and opportunity for newcomers, he said.

“People have yet again reposed their trust in the leadership and development agenda of PM Modi. I am confident that the people of Karnataka will bless BJP in the upcoming Assembly elections,” said former CM BS Yediyurappa.

Opposition Congress and JDS leaders, however, maintained that the Gujarat polls will not have any impact on Karnataka elections as the political scenarios in both states are completely different. BJP leaders in Karnataka also need to look at Himachal Pradesh results, state Congress said taking to a social media platform. People in Karnataka will also reject BJP the way they have done in Himachal Pradesh, the party said. JDS leader and former CM HD Kumaraswamy said Gujarat polls will not have any impact on Karnataka as people took such a decision in Gujarat due to the absence of strong opposition parties in that state.

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