Karnataka polls 2018: Modi kick-starts rally blitz from today; top updates

Days before the Karnataka Assembly Election 2018, PM Modi will address rallies in Santhemarahalli, Udupi, and Chikkodi for BJP's Karnataka poll campaign. Find updates on Modi's campaign in Karnataka.

BS Web Team  |  New Delhi 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing at the inauguration of the Dr. Ambedkar National Memorial at 26 Alipur Road, Delhi on Friday
Karnataka Assembly Elections 2018: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched his campaign blitzkrieg in a bid to oust the Congress government in the state. File photo

With the Karanataka Assembly election 2018 fast approaching, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched a campaign blitzkrieg in the poll-bound southern state, to add heft to the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP's) efforts to unseat the Siddaramaiah-led Congress government. In the first of his three rallies scheduled for Tuesday, the prime minister addressed the public in the Chamarajanagara district's Santhemarahalli. Later in the day, he will be addressing rallies in Udupi and Chikkodi. Besides these, Modi's campaign will include 12 more rallies in Karnataka until May 8.

Meanwhile, a day before Prime Minister Modi landing in Karnataka, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah posed a series of questions aimed at him over the BJP giving tickets to 'tainted' mining baron G Janardhan Reddy's brothers and associates, declaring B S Yeddyurappa as its chief ministerial candidate, and raising the issue of rapes in the state while also giving tickets to rape-accused candidates.

BJP chief ministerial candidate Yeddyurappa, for his part, said that the BJP would form the next government in Karnataka with an absolute majority because of a 'Modi wave' in the state. The state BJP chief also said the saffron party was campaigning as a "united force" to achieve the mission of winning 150 seats in the May 12 Assembly polls.

Also in the fray, Janata Dal (Secular) chief ministerial nominee H D Kumaraswamy told news agencies that he would emerge as the "king" and not a "kingmaker" after the Karnataka Assembly Election 2018.

The BJP appears to be leaving no stone unturned in its campaign. In fact, even Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb has been roped in to campaign for the party ahead of the May 12 Karnataka Assembly election. Further, Modi's campaign comes close on the heels of Congress President Rahul Gandhi holding his Jan Aakrosh rally at Ramlila Ground in Delhi, where he claimed that his party would win the polls in Karnataka and other states and return to power at the Centre in 2019.

Polling for the 224-member Karnataka Assembly will be held on May 12 and the results would be declared on the 15th of the month.

Here are the top 10 developments around Karnataka Assembly Election 2018 and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's campaign in the state starting today:

1) Modi's pipeline of rallies in Karnataka: With the high-stakes Karnataka Assembly election 2018 days away, Prime Minister Modi is scheduled to address 12 more rallies in Karnataka until May 8.

2) Modi addresses day's first Karnataka rally in Santhemarahalli: Prime Minister Modi on Tuesday addressed a public rally at Santhemarahalli in Karnataka's Chamarajanagara district. Modi will campaign in the poll-bound state from today as the BJP looks to unseat the ruling Congress and form a government in the southern state for a second time. After addressing the rally in Santhemarahalli, Modi, who last visited Karnataka for campaigning in February, will be addressing rallies at MGM College in Udupi district and Chikkodi in Belagavi district. The MGM College rally will be held at 3 pm and the Chikkodi one at 6 pm.



During Modi's earlier visit, Siddarmaiah had welcomed him and asked him to address the Mahadayi water sharing dispute with neighbouring Goa. The prime minister, for his part, had hit back at Siddaramaiah, calling his dispensation "10 per cent government" -- alleging that the Congress government in Karnataka took 10 per cent commission for development works.

3) Amit Shah visiting Mutts, holding public meetings in Karnataka today: BJP National President Amit Shah is also in Karnataka and will be taking part in election campaigns in different parts of the state. Shah will on Tuesday visit the Sri Sringeri Sharada Peetham Mutt and the Balehonnur Mutt. He will also hold public meetings at the Sringeri, Mudigere and Arakalagudu constituencies.

4) Modi to visit Krishna matha: Ahead of his Udupi rally, Modi will visit the Krishna matha and meet the senior seer there.

5) Siddaramaiah tells Modi to end 'hypocrisy on corruption': A day before Modi lands in Karnataka, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah posed a series of questions addressed to him. "Dear @narendramodi, Heard you are visiting Namma Karnataka tomorrow. We welcome you to our state. While you are here, we Kannadigas would like you to address the following concerns. Please #AnswerMaadiModi," Siddaramaiah tweeted.

In his next tweet, the chief minister advised Modi to end his "hypocrisy" on corruption. "Would G Janardhan Reddy be joining your rallies here? You have given his family & friends 8 tickets, hoping it will help BJP in 10-15 seats. And then, you lecture us on corruption. Please end this hypocrisy. Kannadigas aren't wearing Kamala on their ears," Siddaramaiah said.

He also wanted to know whether Yeddyurappa will still be BJP's chief ministerial candidate when it is reported that Modi himself doesn't want to share a stage with him. "You first make scam tainted @BSYBJP your party's CM face in Karnataka. Then media reports that you don't want to be seen sharing the stage with him at rallies! Karnataka wants to know if Yeddyurappa is still your CM candidate?" Siddaramaiah questioned.

Siddaramaiah also accused the BJP of giving tickets to rape-accused candidates and MLAs who watched porn in the State Assembly, while trying to politicise rapes in Karnataka on the other hand. "In Karnataka, you give tickets to rape accused & MLAs who watched porn in Assembly. In UP, CM Adityanath protects a BJP MLA who raped a 16 Yr old girl. In J&K, your MLAs defend rapists of a child. And then your party makes bombastic Ads to politicise rape in Karnataka?! (sic)," Siddaramaiah said.


7) Siddaramaiah asks Modi questions over employment, note ban and farmers' issues: Siddaramaiah also said that Modi didn't fulfil his poll promise of giving Rs 1.5 million (15 lakh) to people, didn't create jobs for youth, and brought misery to people through demonetisation. "First, you promised 15L to ppl, then Shah called it an election Jumla. You promised jobs, but then advised youth to sell pakodas. You said demonetisation would end black money, but it only brought misery to common ppl. And then you come here and call real development a lollipop? (sic)," the Karnataka CM said.

He also wanted to know whether Prime Minister Modi was really serious about farmers' concerns. "Your mantra = Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas but your govt has forsaken the poor. Banks write off 2.71L Cr corp loans, but farmers get only speeches. MSP for farmers not increased, but they get promise of doubling income by 2022. Are you serious abt farmers' concerns? #AnswerMaadiModi (sic)," Siddaramaiah said.

8) Yeddyurappa sees Modi wave sweeping Karnataka, rules out alliance with JD(S): The BJP will ride a 'Modi wave' to form the next government in Karnataka with an absolute majority, said Yeddyurappa. He also ruled out a post-poll alliance with the JD(S) "as of now".

He rejected the Congress' allegation that the BJP was stoking caste and communal sentiments to win the elections. "Not at all," he said. "Had the Congress been secular, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah would not have been contesting from a second place, Badami, a constituency with a sizeable population of Kuruba," he said. Siddaramaiah hails from the Kuruba community.

Siddaramaiah is "scared" of losing his traditional Chamundeshwari seat, from where he has won five times since 1983, he added.

The BJP has fielded its resourceful Ballari MP B Sriramulu against Siddaramaiah in Badami in North Karnataka. "We are confident that Sriramulu will win that seat," Yeddyurappa said.

Asked if the BJP's alleged "communal politics" would work for it in coastal Karnataka, Yeddyurappa said, "There is no such thing out there. Congress is spreading lies. There is only Modi wave and we are going to sweep not only the coastal region but the entire state."

Pollsters have predicted a hung Assembly in Karnataka, with neither the ruling Congress nor the BJP attaining a majority. They have said the JD(S), of former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, would emerge as the kingmaker.

Yeddyurappa, a Lingayat strongman who had supported the demand for religious minority status for the community when he headed the Karnataka Janata Paksha (KJP) that he had formed after breaking away from the BJP, said the issue would not hurt the electoral prospects of the saffron party and instead "backfire" on the ruling Congress.

In an effort to cut into the solid vote base of the BJP, the Siddaramaiah government had recently recommended to the Centre that religious minority status be granted to Lingayats and their sub-caste Veerashaiva Lingayats. Lingayats have traditionally backed the BJP. The Lingayats, who account for about 17 per cent of the state's population, have a large presence in north and central Karnataka, especially in Shivamogga, Davanagere, and Chitradurga, where their votes can be critical to the electoral outcome.

The BJP has reacted cautiously to the contentious issue, while the Congress, unsure of the consequences it may have for the party in the elections, has also kept it on the back burner.

The 75-year-old Yeddyurappa, who has won seven times from Shikaripura, said he would triumph with a huge margin from his home seat because the Lingayats would not let him down.

Replying to a query on whether Siddaramaiah's repeated reference to his incarceration for alleged corruption at election meetings was harming his image, Yeddyurappa said, "He is confusing and misleading public because all corruption charges against me have been set aside by the court." Yeddyurappa was the first chief minister of Karnataka to have been jailed over allegations of corruption, and had spent 25 days behind bars.

10) Three times higher cash, jewellery seized this time: As Karnataka Assembly Election 2018 approaches, the value of cash and jewellery seizure by the Income Tax Department in the state has gone up three times to about Rs 250 million (Rs 25 crore) in the state as compared to the last elections, the Election Commission (EC) said. The EC said it has also been found that the "bulk of cash seized during operations in the present assembly elections has been meant for distribution."

During the last Assembly polls in 2013, the tax department had seized Rs 49.7 million (Rs 4.97 crore) of cash and jewellery worth Rs 34.1 million (Rs 3.41 crore) during the "entire" campaign period, the EC said.

With agency inputs
First Published: Tue, May 01 2018. 09:35 IST