State BJP leaders hold secret meeting to plan strategy

Senior BJP leaders held a detailed a secret meeting here on Friday to work out strategy to save the BJP government headed by Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar.

The meeting was attended by Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar, his deputies R Ashok and K S Eshwarappa, BJP organising secretary Santosh and BJP national general secretary H N Ananth Kumar.

Sources told Express the leaders discussed ways and means to checkmate any efforts made by  former CM  B S Yeddyurappa to topple the government and to convince those “fence sitting” BJP legislators from tendering resignation at least till the budget session is over.

The leaders worked out strategy to ensure that budget session goes on smoothly from February 4 and Shettar should present the state budget on February 8. Meanwhile, a senior BJP leader on condition of anonymity, told Express that the party has decided to present a populist budget to snub Yeddyurappa. “If worse comes to worst, the party has decided to seek the support of independent legislators.

The government would plunge into problems if more than 18 legislators resign. To prevent this en masse resignation, the leaders decided to retain those legislators in the party till February 13. Even if the government falls, Shettar can remain as the caretaker CM till the next elections,” the leader added.

The leader said the party has already decided to project Yeddyurappa as anti-north Karnataka and anti-Lingayat if he succeeds in bringing down the Shettar government. This would be made the election plank to woo the voters of N-K region.  This would  spoil the prospects of the KJP as it was heavily banking on the support of Lingayats of Mumbai-Karnataka and Hyderabad-Karnataka regions and the winning chances of 13 legislators who identified in Yeddyurappa camp.