Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai denied any knowledge of alternate plans to win the Assembly elections. Responding to senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader R Ashoka's comments about the party’s Plan B for winning the Assembly elections in the state, Bommai on Friday, May 12, said he did not know what it was. "I haven't spoken to him and I don't know what plan B is," he said.
Speaking to the media on Thursday, Ashoka said that the BJP will start an ‘operation’ with the high command’s guidance if the party does not win a majority. He had expressed confidence that the BJP would form the government, irrespective of whether they win a majority. When asked what the party’s course of action would be if it were a hung Assembly, Ashoka said, “We will form a government. Don't ask how and when. We'll discuss with our central and state leaders about plan B on what to do."
Bommai also commented on the Congress's move to book resorts. In 2019, resort politics was witnessed during a trust vote in Karnataka, with MLAs from the ruling coalition of Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) [(JD(S)] being accommodated at Taj Vivanta Yeshwantpur and Prestige Golfshire, while BJP MLAs stayed at Ramada Hotel in Yelahanka. The political manoeuvring culminated in the BJP becoming the ruling party as several MLAs switched to their side.
Bommai expressed confidence that there was no question of a hung Assembly and that the BJP would win. "If Congress is booking resorts, it means they are not confident of their win or they don't believe in their candidates. There's no question of a hung Assembly. We will win," he said.
To form the government in the Karnataka Assembly, a party or coalition must secure at least 113 seats out of the total 224 seats. In the 2018 Assembly elections, the BJP emerged as the single largest party with 104 seats, while the Indian National Congress won 78 seats, and the JD(S) secured 37 seats. However, after bye-elections in 2019, the BJP managed to convince several Congress and JD(S) legislators to join their party, which increased their numbers in the Assembly to 120. Meanwhile, the Congress was reduced to 69 seats, and JD(S) to 32 seats.
While most exit polls have predicted a hung assembly in Karnataka, two specific exit polls have indicated that Congress may be able to form the government.