Maintaining that there was an "unprecedented anti-incumbency" against the SM Krishna government and even a "sense of revulsion" at places, BJP on Friday said the elections had seen its emergence as a "centre stage party" in the state politics.
"There is an unprecedented anti-incumbency against the SM Krishna government. Anti-incumbency is reflected not merely in disillusionment and anger but at places, there is a sense of revulsion," party spokesman and in charge of Karnataka election affairs Arun Jaitley told reporters here.
He said the principal factors for anti-incumbency were water and power crises and drought management and corruption. "The kind of corruption which has taken place in Karnataka has few parallels", he said, adding, the Telgi scam was the "mascot" of the Congress governance.
Jaitley said apart from anti-incumbency, the BJP substantially occupying the non-Congress opposition space, its realistic alliance with JD(U), social repolarisation and social engineering and identification of people with Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had contributed to the BJP evolving as a centrestage party in Karnataka politics.
Asserting that there was a "surge" in support of the BJP, he said a surge normally defies normal psephological model.
{{/usCountry}}Asserting that there was a "surge" in support of the BJP, he said a surge normally defies normal psephological model.
{{/usCountry}}Taking a swipe at the Congress for carrying out an advertisement today highlighting an exit poll predicting its return to power, he said it was a pity the ruling party had to hang on to one poll, a "stray exception" as against several others (which predicted its defeat). It was a "campaign of desperation" and a "campaign on the backfoot".