Basavaraj Bommai meets RSS brass over Karnataka debacle

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New Delhi, May 15

The BJP on Monday started the process to identify the factors that caused Karnataka election loss with outgoing Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai meeting top brass of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

Bommai visited the state headquarters of the Sangh, BJP’s ideological mentor, in Bengaluru today.

“We discussed the election results. We also talked about ways to reorganise the party in the days to come with the guidance of the RSS,” Bommai said after the meetings at Keshava Krupa, RSS’ Karnataka headquarters.

Karnataka BJP president Nalin Kumar Kateel held prolonged discussions with RSS leaders today, after the saffron party was reduced to 66 seats, falling way short of its professed target of 150.

The loss in Karnataka is of particular concern to the RSS considering the fact that the incumbent BJP national general secretary organisation, tasked with coordination between the BJP and the Sangh, is BL Santosh, who hails from Karnataka.

Santosh played a key role in Karnataka poll strategy. Meanwhile, the state BJP sought detailed reports on party’s booth-level performance in every segment.

The party is worried about evident failure of its well heeled election machine and micro booth managers and is viewing the Karnataka poll loss as a setback to its electoral as well as organisational prowess. In the days to come, factors will be pinpointed to understand reasons behind losses including a massive shift of the traditional pro BJP Lingayat votebank to the Congress. Course correction would follow, BJP sources said.