Amit Shah in Bengaluru, BJP rubbishes K'taka leadership change speculation

Union Home Minister Amit Shah who is on a two-day visit to Karnataka on Friday attended the 115th Jayanthi and Guru Vandana program of Shivakumara Swamiji at Siddaganga Math in Tumkur city.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah who is on a two-day visit to Karnataka on Friday attended the 115th Jayanthi and Guru Vandana program of Shivakumara Swamiji at Siddaganga Math in Tumkur. Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Tejasvi Surya were also present on the occasion.

Home Minister Amit Shah was received by Chief Minister Bommai and BJP MP Tjejasvi Surya at the HAL airport in Bengaluru. 

Shah embarked on his visit to Karnataka which is scheduled to go to the polls next year on Thursday late at night and was received by Chief Minister Bommai, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi, and other leaders of the state.

Chief Minister welcomed Amit Shah, by tweeting, “It was an absolute pleasure to welcome Union Home & Co-Operation Minister @AmitShah Ji at the HAL Airport along with my team. Many upcoming schemes will be discussed & executed expeditiously with his mentoring. #KarnatakaWelcomesAmitShah”

Several other BJP leaders were also present to welcome the Home Minister

After attending this program, the Home Minister will also attend other programmes in the state including the Foundation stone laying of the 200-bedded hospital in Sathya Sai Grama in Muddenahalli at around 2.20 pm, according to the Home Ministry.

Shah will be attending Karnataka State Cooperative Conference at around 4 pm in Bengaluru Palace. Also slated later in the day is a meeting with a BJP core group of the state.

The meeting assumes a lot of significance given the fact that there have been several rounds of speculations that there could be a change of leadership in the state including the Chief Minister as well as the party president.

Home Minister Amit Shah will be participating in the core group meeting along with BJP general secretary Arun Singh who is in charge of Karnataka. Top sources in the BJP, while speaking to ANI, rubbished any possibility of a change of leadership in the state.

"There is no question of change of leadership in the state... The president (Nalin Kateel) has been given a term and he will definitely complete that," said the sources.