Was Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje sidelined in BJP's Karnataka blitzkrieg?

It was the last day of campaigning and BJP's star power was visible in each and every pocket of Karnataka. From senior cabinet ministers to prominent chief ministers, the BJP put its best foot forward on this last day. But the campaign did not come to a close without its glitches and question marks.

Shivraj Singh Chouhan during his roadshow in Karnataka.

The BJP has several chief ministers including Yogi Adityanath, Shivraj Singh Chauhan, Raman Singh - and Vasundhara Raje, who was conspicuous by her absence.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan held road shows in support of BJP candidates in both Chickpet and Mysore. He tweeted to the people of Karnataka to vote against the 'divide and rule' policy of the Congress government. Similarly, Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh Raman Singh attended a roadshow at Hebbal.

But the most sought after campaigner has been Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath who holds a massive appeal, and is the head of the Gorakhnath Math - which helped him get better access to several spiritual leaders across Karnataka. Yesterday he met one such key spiritual leader - Pejavar Math head Swami Vishvesh Theerth ji Maharaj. Today, he held meetings at Bijapur, and a massive roadshow at Bantwal, which is part of Dakshina Karnataka - where the BJP is not very strong.

Vasundhara Raje's visible absence from the entire campaigning was stark. Many construe it as her growing disenchantment with party president Amit Shah regarding the appointment of the next state president of the BJP. Though she defended her absence saying her work in Rajasthan kept her busy, the explanation hardly holds any water. That's because even Yogi Adityanath campaigned even as a storm wreaked havoc in Uttar Pradesh.

A party spokesperson said the BJP was not bound to inviting each and every CM or MP and she is certainly someone whom the party campaign can manage without.

The campaign was led by BJP president Amit Shah himself in Badami of Bagalkote area. At a press conference in Bangalore, he claimed the BJP will get over 130 seats. Cabinet ministers with the knack of connecting with the people were assigned ground duties on the last day.

Petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan held a roadshow in Dobbolapur, where he was seen interacting with locals despite the language barrier. Anand Kumar had roadshows in 5 places, Nirmala Sitharaman in 2 places, JP Nadda in 2 places and Santosh Gangwar in 2 places.

The party's most suave and articulate spokespersons were flown in and made to station in Bengaluru for the last few days. All press conferences were held from Bangalore. Sambit Patra emerged as a favourite who could connect well with the voters through social media and the like. He was asked to hold three roadshows on the last day in different parts of Hubli.

On social media, BJP leaders who couldn't go out campaigning promoted the party's roadshows and press conferences. On the last day of campaigning, the Karnataka BJP trended the hashtag #SarkaraBadalisiBJPGellisi which translates into 'Change the Govt, Bring in BJP'. Even on the last day various political memes taking a dig at Congress were released by BJP's Karnataka Unit.

But the question that still remains is, why was Vasundhara Raje not present at a campaign that has seen the party's tallest members work so hard for a state that is extremely crucial to the BJP? Or was she kept out deliberately?

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