BJP president Amit Shah with party’s Telangana unit chief K Laxman at Begumpet Airport in Hyderabad on Friday. (Source: PTI Photo)
BJP president Amit Shah on Friday told party workers and leaders in Telangana that the BJP’s mission for the 2019 Assembly polls in Telangana was to win more than 60 of the 119 seats in the state.
Addressing in-charges of wards, mandals, Assembly and Parliamentary constituencies at the BJP office at Nampally, Shah told the party workers to gear up for the polls by starting door-to-door campaigns and reaching out to people in each of the state’s 31 districts.
Shah met 107 BJP Vistaraks from as many Assembly constituencies. He also met state BJP president K Lakshman and other leaders and discussed the strategy to be adopted for the state polls. “He has given us a roadmap for Mission Telangana. His visit has also boosted the morale of the cadre,’’ Lakshman said.
“He told the leaders and cadre to be prepared to fight against TRS’s corrupt rule and the family politics of Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao. He said the fight should start from the village level,’’ a BJP leader said. Shah told the core committee of the state BJP that there was a need to go to the grassroots and booth-level in all the districts.
As part of the party’s Sampark for Samarthan campaign ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Shah met shuttler Saina Nehwal and Ramoji Rao, owner of Eenadu and ETV. Rao is known to be close to the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), which broke ties with the BJP in April. While the meeting raised eyebrows, BJP leaders said it was a casual meeting.
“Shah gave Rao a brochure on the four years of the Narendra Modi government and requested him to give his feedback. There is nothing more to the meeting,’’ a BJP leader said.
In the afternoon, Shah held a meeting with BJP Lok Sabha Election Management Committee in Telangana. District leaders submitted reports of the current political situation in each constituency and the prospects of BJP in the Lok Sabha election.
“Telangana has 17 Lok Sabha seats and our objective is to win as many as possible. We will reach out to the people and create awareness about achievements of the BJP government at the Centre,’’ Lakshman said.
Shah also reviewed the response to Lakshman’s Jana Chaitanya Yatra in Telangana.