Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Mar 18: BJP, which has acquired confidence and added aggression, having been successful in forming governments in four out of five states which went to polls recently, is planning to go full throttle ahead to annex two assembly seats of Nanjangud and Gundlupet which are going to polls on April 9. It then wants to bring together state level party leaders who are divided now, and then go full steam towards its long-cherished dream of achieving the target of 150 MLAs out of 224 in the state assembly, known as 'Mission 150' during the next assembly election.

As per a survey conducted by a private organization, BJP is likely to win 126 seats as against 60 of the Congress and 22 of JD(S)if election is held to the assembly now. The party too has undertaken survey to determine the constituencies where its victory is foregone conclusion, those where its chances are good, and the others where it will be almost impossible for the party's candidates to win. On the basis of categorization made on this basis, the party will be drawing up different strategies for different constituencies, sources say. The party president also wants to find out whose candidature brightens the party's prospects in different constituencies through this survey.

The national leadership of the party is confident of expanding its realm of success to Karnataka too, as it has information that the people's opinion in Karnataka is firmly crystallizing against Siddaramaiah. The blue print towards achieving this goal has been prepared, and as per reports, the only hindrance the national leaders of the party reckon as real obstacle in its victory march is differences among state level leaders.

The national think-tank of BJP had felt that the party's national president, Amit Shah, had brought truce between warring leaders, B S Yeddyurappa and K S Eshwarappa, after he called them both to New Delhi and asked Yeddyurappa to make certain changes in the appointments he made, and convinced Eshwarappa to lead the party's backward classes morcha instead of going ahead with Sangolli Rayanna Brigade. Although Yeddyurappa did some token exercise as a fallout of this meeting, the differences are growing, considering that the Brigade is continuing with its activities with the active support of Eshwarappa. A team comprising of Yeddyurappa, state in-charge of BJP affairs, Muraleedhar Rao, national joint organizing secretary, Santosh, and state organizing secretary, Arun, which was formed to coordinate between the warring leaders, has failed in its task so far. The committee has never met till now to discuss the contentious issues and find a lasting solution. Although Yeddyurappa has replaced three district presidents of the party and his camp says he has done his bit to broker peace, the opponents are not satisfied as they feel this is too little.

As Amit Shah closely monitors election preparations, the leaders now are faced with the compulsion of projecting a united face and working wholeheartedly for the party's success in the bypolls. After these two bypolls, Shah is expected to visit the state. Party activists hope that Shah's visit will bring curtains down on all contentious issues and differences. Shah has already issued certain instructions to state BJP leaders, which have to be strictly followed. He has firmly told the state unit that egotism and factionalism will have no place in the party.