Bellary: BJP leader Ananth Kumar on Sunday asserted that party was fighting the bypoll to the Bellary rural assembly segment unitedly and the unity will bring them victory.
"We are all campaigning together. We are a united party. Definitely BJP will win in Bellary. It is the strength of unity- strength of BJP that is going to win", he told reporters here.
He was responding to a question whether he was happy about former Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa, with whom he is reportedly having strained relations, campaigning in Bellary for the November 30 bypoll. On whether Reddy brothers were being targeted after Sreeramulu`s resignation as a BJP MLA, Kumar said "here the battle lines are drawn.And BJP is contesting a battle here- an election here. Both Congress and JD(s) have come together and they have proved themselves that they are two faces of the same coin. We want to show the people- that Congress- means Vinash (destruction) and BJP means Vikas (development).
On Congress calling it a "two-way contest" between them and the BJP and Sreeramulu a "poor third", he said "couple of days later, people are going to express their mandate and every time it is said that this will happen to BJP and that will happen to BJP." "Since 1991, BJP is on a winning spree in Karnataka and this time also we’ve won all the bye-elections, we have won all the major elections...", he said, claiming that BJP would win this time also.
Meanwhile,veteran Congress Leader and former Union Minister Jaffer Sharief slammed the BJP Government while campaigning for the bypoll.
He said the voters should "reject BJP for undermining democratic principles and giving impetus to feudal powers in the district".
Sharief alleged that money power had undermined the democratic set up in Bellary and the elections were "always influenced by those who indulged in illegal mining.`
The bypoll is witnessing a triangular fight between BJP, Congress and Sreeramulu who is fighting as an independent.
PTI