Karnataka Assembly Polls 2023: Amit Shah to visit Mandya, BJP focuses on Old Mysuru region

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Bengaluru: Union Home Minister Amit Shah is set to visit the Old Mysuru region of Karnataka on December 30 and 31 as the BJP prepares for the 2023 Assembly elections in the state. The BJP has identified the Old Mysuru region, where it is traditionally weak, as a key focus in the run-up to the elections, and Shah's visit is expected to energize party workers and instill confidence in them.

On December 30, Shah will be visiting Mandya, a Vokkaliga community-dominated district that is largely seen as a bastion of the JD(S) and Congress, where he will inaugurate a mega-dairy and address a public meeting. The BJP has been making consistent efforts to make inroads into constituencies or regions where it is not strong, particularly in the Old Mysuru region, in an attempt to increase its political influence in the area. In the 2018 elections, the BJP managed to win just one seat in Hassan, but later in the high-stakes 2019 by-polls, it won the K R Pet seat, its first victory in the Mandya district. In November 2020, the party also won the Sira Assembly segment in the Tumakuru district for the first time.

In addition to his official engagements, Shah will also be holding party meetings in Mandya where he is expected to review the BJP's poll preparedness and discuss strategy with leaders and booth-level workers. The BJP has set a target of winning at least 150 of the total 224 seats in the Assembly and is hoping to break the nearly four-decade jinx of no party in government retaining power in the state since 1985.

After his visit to Mandya, Shah will return to Bengaluru where he will participate in a Cooperative convention at the Palace Grounds. Following this, he is scheduled to attend a BJP meeting. On December 31, Shah will have a breakfast meeting with party leaders, after which he will lay the foundation stone for the Central Intelligence Training Institute and inaugurate ITBP's residential and non-residential complexes. He will also visit the Souharda Sahakari Federation before attending the BJP's booth presidents and booth level agents convention at the Palace Ground.

The visit has gained added significance amid speculation about an expansion or reshuffle of Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai's cabinet and demands for reservation from various communities in the state. Shah's visit is expected to provide a boost to the BJP's campaign in the Old Mysuru region as it seeks to increase its political influence in the area and ultimately win a majority in the Assembly elections.

(With PTI inputs)