BJP planning to rope in Pawan Kalyan with eye on Telugu-speaking voters in Karnataka

BENGALURU: After getting popular actor ‘Kiccha’ Sudeep on its side, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is now said to be trying to rope in South start Pawan Kalyan to campaign for it in the May 10 Karnataka Assembly election with an eye on the votes of the Telugu-speaking population in the state.

The BJP top brass is said to be in serious talks with the ‘Power Star’. His visit to Delhi to meet BJP national president J P Nadda has lent credence to the speculation. If Pawan Kalyan, founder of the Jana Sena Party, agrees to campaign for the BJP, the party stands to make major gains in 60 constituencies of 12 districts where there are a high number of Telugu-speaking voters.

As per the BJP’s calculations, Pawan Kalyan could potentially sway votes of Telugu-speaking voters in 28 Assembly segments in Bengaluru Urban district, six constituencies in Kolar district, four segments in Bengaluru Rural district, seven in Raichur, five each in Chikkaballapur and Koppal and 2-3 segments in Tumakuru district. It could also influence abou 20 per cent of votes in Chitradurga, Yadgir, Bidar and Kalaburagi district, according to the party.