Tried & tested formula: BJP goes micro to expand scope

The ruling BJP has planned a massive mobilisation of its grassroots cadre for the December 5 bypolls by focusing on booth-level activities as well as social media outreach.

Starting this weekend, the party will begin booth-level meetings across 4,185 booths covering all the constituencies going to the bypolls.

Further, the party is taking to social media to boost the morale of its workers, according to BJP’s bypolls in-charge Arvind Limbavali. “There is an in-charge committee for every booth. We will create WhatsApp groups for every booth to organise the cadre,” he said.

The party began its preparation for bypolls soon after the Election Commission first announced the dates in September, Limbavali said. The bypolls to the 15 constituencies are crucial for the BJP as it needs to win at least seven seats to secure a majority in the Assembly.

Limbavali said the party will seek votes for a stable government that can deliver.

“The previous BJP governments under B S Yediyurappa, D V Sadananda Gowda and Jagadish Shettar are all examples of the good governance given by BJP,” Limbavali claimed.

All the senior leaders of BJP will campaign in the 15 constituencies actively.

“The chief minister will start his campaign in Athani in North Karnataka from November 23, while party state president Nalin Kumar Kateel will begin from KR Pet in South Karnataka,” Limbavali said.

The BJP is known for investing in grassroots mobilisation. For the May 2018 Assembly polls, the party employed the concept of Page Pramukh, in which one party worker was appointed for every page on the voters’ list of a booth, to keep in touch with the voters. Also, the party also has Shakti Kendra, a cluster of four to five polling booths, where party workers act as micro election managers.

According to last year’s polling data, the party lacks strength in Chikkaballapur, Yeshwantpur, KR Pet and
Hunsur. But in Chikkaballapur, for instance, it is said that disqualified MLA K Sudhakar’s father Keshava Reddy started preparing the ground for bypolls at least three months in advance.

“Earlier, the BJP had a presence in Hunsur, so it’s not a new area for us. This time, we’re confident of winning in KR Pet too. We don’t have much network in Mandya district, but still, we supported the candidature of Sumalatha Ambareesh in the Lok Sabha elections. In Ramanagar and Mandya, we’ll gain strength by the end of this election,” Limabavali said.