Karnataka polls: Amit Shah, other leaders attend BJP meeting in Delhi

New Delhi [India], April 8 (ANI): Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday reached BJP National President JP Nadda's residence in the national capital for a meeting of the party to discuss and finalise the list of candidates for the upcoming Karnataka Assembly polls.

Karnataka BJP president Nalinkumar Kateel, former Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa, Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and other leaders were also present at Nadda’s residence.

According to sources, the party will hold its Central Election Committee meeting on Sunday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Nadda, Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, BJP general secretary BL Santosh and members of the party's Central Election Committee will be present at the meeting, they said.

According to party sources, the core group of the BJP in Karnataka has shortlisted three names for each Assembly seat which will be placed before the Central Election Committee. The party's central leadership will then brainstorm over these names before locking the candidates.

On April 4, the BJP's core group in Karnataka drew up a shortlist of candidates in a meeting with the party's national general secretary Arun Singh, state election in-charge Dharmendra Pradhan, co-in-charge Mansukh Mandaviya, Central Election Committee member Annamalai, former chief minister Yediyurappa and his successor and incumbent Basavaraj Bommai.

The BJP emerged as the largest single party in the last Assembly elections, winning 104 seats, with the Congress winning 80 and the JD(S) 37 seats.

The Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar had on March 29 this year announced the poll schedule for the election of 224-member Karnataka Legislative Assembly. The state will go to polls on May 10 and the votes will be counted on May 13.

The term of the current Karnataka Legislative Assembly is set to end on May 24 this year.

Earlier speaking to reporters, Bommai said here on Saturday that a discussion over candidate selection for 224 assembly constituencies will take place in the core committee meeting of the BJP.

"Today, an important meeting is to be held under the guidance of BJP national president JP Nadda. During this meeting, a discussion over candidate selection for 224 assembly seats will be done. And tomorrow Parliamentary board of the party is also meeting," the Karnataka chief minister said.

BJP is yet to declare its candidates for the polls.

Congress MP Surjewala on Friday at a press briefing in Delhi said that his party had announced most of the seats, “but the BJP could not declare a single seat. I want to ask JP Nadda, why are you scared? Do JP Nadda, PM Modi, Amit Shah and CM Bommai think that announcement of seats will lead to issues in the party?”

Chief Minister Bommai had hit back saying that the opposition party in Karnataka did not have candidates on many seats and got them from other parties.

Former Karnataka Chief Minister and BJP leader BS Yediyurappa on Friday had said that the party would soon finalise the list of candidates for the State Assembly elections.

Since Karnataka is the only south Indian state where BJP is in power, It is in no holds bar campaign to retain the state. A BJP senior source told ANI that BJP is also planning carpet bombing in Karnataka.

"The names of 40-star campaigners have also been decided for Karnataka. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, former Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Goa CM Pramod Sawant, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, and several Union ministers like Rajnath Singh, Smriti Irani, Nirmala Sitharaman have been included in the list. All have been asked to give two weeks' time in the poll-bound state," he added.

Congress and Janata Dal-Secular have announced 166 and 93 candidates respectively so far for the Karnataka polls. (ANI)