For the Opposition BJP, which is keen to win at least 25 of the 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka with its ally JD(S), the announcement of poll dates coincided with the formal launch of public campaign by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Kalaburagi on Saturday.
As Mr. Modi is the “trump card” for the BJP in these polls, he is expected to make whirlwind tours to Karnataka in addition to his second visit on March 18 to Shivamogga. The party has already completed the first phase of poll preparations in which the 28 Lok Sabha seats were divided into eight clusters.
The party is set to try out micro-management strategies based on the local geo-cultural trends. It has constituted 35 committees, including those related to organising campaigns, visits of Central leaders, and so on. Former Minister V. Sunil Kumar, State convener of the party’s Election Management Committee, will monitor these.
