Pics: Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (MD)

Mangaluru, Jun 17: BJP leaders of Dakshina Kannada district led by MP Nalin Kumar Kateel on Wednesday June 17 visited the houses of members who enrolled in the party recently through the missed call campaign and collected personal details, as part of the nation-wide 'Maha Sampark Abhiyan'.

The party leaders visited former CREDAI president Pushparaj Jain's residence at Nanthoor. Jain filled the form and became a member. Thereafter, Pushparaj Jain felicitated MP Nalin Kumar Kateel.

Addressing the media, Nalin Kateel said, "BJP is the number one party in India with the highest number of supporters. Now Maha Sampark Abhiyan is going on, wherein we will be visiting the houses of those who had given missed calls to become BJP members. We will brief them about the motto and objectives of BJP and the achievements of the Modi-led government so far. We will turn them into our party members officially. 

"Also, from today onwards our party workers will be sitting in all the booths and people who had given missed calls can visit their respective booths and fill the forms and become the official members of BJP. Already 2.5 lac people in the district have given missed calls. It is our duty to turn those people into our party workers."

'Sushma Swaraj showed her humanitarian side'

Regarding allegations against external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj that she had helped tainted former IPL chief Lalit Modi in procuring documents to travel from the UK to Portugal, Nalin Kumar Kateel said that Sushma Swaraj has showed her humanitarian side. "If you look at the past, I would like to ask who gave visa to underworld fugitive Dawood Ibrahim? It was the Congress party. There are many similar cases in which the Congress is involved.

"Prime Minister Modi and BJP president Amit Shah have discussed this issue and it is a closed matter now. Congress should not keep pulling the same issue. Sushma Swarj could have been in danger if she had given him visa for business purpose. Do not bring politics into this matter," he added.

Referring to RJD president Lalu Prasad Yadav's statement in support of Sushma Swaraj, he said, "Former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad Yadav seems to have wisdom which the Congress party does not. Congress has no power to do anything, and I am happy that it is trying to make some noise these days with such issues."

On chief minister Siddaramaiah's statement on Sushma Swaraj, former minister Krishna J Palemar said, "Siddaramaiah does not have the moral right to talk about Sushma Swaraj. Taking back 1,400 communal cases (against PFI and KFD) is a bigger mistake than what he is claiming as a mistake done by Sushma Swaraj."

Monappa Bhandary, incharge of 'Maha Sampark Abhiyan' in Mangaluru, Sulochana Bhat, Yogish Bhat, Nagaraj Shetty, Ravi Shankar Mijar, Gopal Krishna, Sudharshan, Sudhir Shetty and others were also present.