Six Takeaways From Amit Shah’s Visit To Coastal Karnataka

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president Amit Shah undertook a three-day tour of the coastal region of Karnataka, possibly one in a series of visits planned for the state.

Shah’s tour was aimed at consolidating the region, where the BJP has become a strong contender, through targeted demographic campaigning, reinforcing the anti-Congress narrative, and party strengthening initiatives.

In keeping with the party’s focus on Hindu consolidation in the coastal region, Shah kicked off his tour with a visit to the Kukke Subramanya Temple. He also took the blessings of H H Sri Sri Vishwesha Teertha Swamiji of the Pejavara Matha and visited the Sri Krishna Matha in Udupi, which are known to be among the well-respected and revered mutts of the coast.

The BJP president addressed a fishermen convention in Udupi and a youth event at Vivekananda College in Puttur as well. The Hindutva narrative was reinforced when Shah visited the homes of murdered Hindu activists, Deepak Rao and Paresh Maesta.

Throughout the tour, Shah vehemently attacked the Congress’ misgovernance in the state and contrasted it with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA)’s record at the Centre. In addition, he addressed three BJP party events to strengthen the party in the region.

Here are six takeaways from Shah’s tour of the region to help you better understand the BJP’s strategy in the upcoming Karnataka assembly elections and beyond.

1. Attacking the politics of minority appeasement

The Congress government in Karnataka has sought to appease minorities and the BJP has consistently attacked it for this reason. For example, there was a backlash when circulars were issued for taking back cases filed against people from the minority communities, including against members of extremist bodies such as the Popular Front of India and the Social Democratic Party of India.

Continuing from there, Shah attacked the Congress government for its appeasement politics by using the example of its leniency towards Mohammad Haris Nalapad, son of Congress Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) N A Haris. He asserted that the government’s inaction came from its fear that it would lose minority votes if it acted against Nalapad.

2. Highlighting murders of Hindus in Karnataka

The BJP president’s tour can also be seen as the start of 'Karnataka Suraksha Yatra', to be organised by the Karnataka state BJP during 3-6 March with the aim of spreading awareness of safety among the youth and promoting peace and security in the coastal districts. Shah, in his speeches, left no stone unturned to highlight the failure of the state government to protect the 24 Hindu activists murdered in the state.

Shah also visited the family of Rao and Maesta, two Hindu activists who were the latest victims of communal tension in the region.

3. Taking the government to task with the “3M” narrative

Accusing the Congress of making the state suffer from the 3Ms of murder, mafia and ministerial corruption, Shah said there needed to be a transformation from the Congress’ “Goon Governance” to the BJP’s “Good Governance”.

Shah was relentless in his criticism of the Siddaramaiah government, whose days, he said, were numbered because of the corruption and misgovernance of the government that had greatly angered the people of the state.

4. Emphasis on the need for a BJP government at both Centre and state

The BJP has been putting forward the narrative that Karnataka can truly develop if there was a BJP government both at the Centre and in the state. Shah pointed out that the Rs 2.1 lakh crore that the BJP government had given to the state was far higher than the Rs 88,583 crore given by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government.

Talking about decisive and impactful schemes such as Ujjwala and Swachh Bharat, Shah emphasised that unlike the UPA, the incumbent NDA government had the political will to bring about positive change in the country. Throughout the tour, Shah made sure to make the point that a combination of Narendra Modi at the Centre and B S Yeddyurappa in the state would put Karnataka back on the path of progress.

5. Strengthening BJP in Karnataka from the grassroots upwards

The BJP in Karnataka has been plagued with internal factionalism and distrust, which have had a damaging effect on the spirit of the booth-level karyakartas of the party in the state. As a result, last-mile connectivity with the electorate that the BJP enjoys in states like Gujarat has not been as effective in Karnataka.

Three events conducted as part of Shah’s tour to the state show that the party and the party president realise this fact and want to resolve it. Shah addressed Nava Shakti Samavesha in Sullia and Bantwal, interacted with social media volunteers from Karavali in Udupi and addressed those in charge of Shakti Kendra for the Mangaluru and Shivamogga divisions in Udupi. In each of these events, Shah stressed on the importance of winning individual booths to win the election.

6. Pitching the New India Movement in anticipation of 2019

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Quit India Movement, raised the call against the evils of communalism, casteism, and corruption and demanded that the people of India come together to create a ‘New India’ by 2022 which would be hunger-free, dirt-free, corruption-free, caste-free, tradition-free, and appeasement-free.

On the same plank, the BJP president realigned the focus of the state BJP towards energising the electorate with a special focus on the youth. In a convention organised in Vivekananda College in Puttur, he discussed the role that the youth can play in developing a ‘New India’. He reiterated that the BJP as a party believes in sabka saath, sabka vikaas and called upon the youth of Karnataka to come forward and prevent a party that believes in the politics of vote banks and appeasement from forming a government again in the state.

Since the election in Uttar Pradesh, Shah has emerged as the Chanakya of the BJP. His focus on the Karnataka elections, despite his numerous other responsibilities, shows that the BJP is serious about winning at the upcoming polls here. The events that Shah attended at the coast show that he has a grasp of the dynamics on the ground.

In addition, Shah’s tour focuses the national media’s attention on the state, which will help in transferring the support that the BJP enjoys across the country, to Karnataka.