Bantwal: Accusing Karnataka’s Siddaramaiah government of being the “most corrupt” in the country and pursuing “appeasement politics”, BJP president Amit Shah today asserted the countdown for its exit has begun.

Launching his tour of the communally sensitive coastal region in poll-bound Karnataka, Shah said if there was to be a competition for the most corrupt government, the award for the last five years would go to the one headed by Siddaramaiah.

Addressing a BJP rally, he said, the Siddaramaiah government had “shamelessly” indulged in corruption.

“….The (Hindi) translation of corruption would be bhrashtachar. Now use Siddaramaiah government as translation for corruption….Siddaramaiah government has shamelessly indulged in corruption for last five years,” he said.

Accusing the Siddaramaiah government of pursuing “appeasement and vote bank politics”, Shah said one after the other more than 20 BJP and RSS activists had been killed in the state.

“As the party president, I would like to assure you… let this Siddaramaiah government try to protect (killers) however much they want. Their countdown has begun.. their time to go has come near. Yeddyurappa government (of BJP) will find the killers and bring them to justice,” he said.

He referred to the recent incident involving Mohammed Nalapad Haris, son of a Congress MLA and himself a party leader, who recently triggered outrage by assaulting a man in a restaurant.

“The son of a Congress MLA assaults a man twice but no FIR is registered. This is appeasement politics. It will not be tolerated,” he said.

The BJP has been targeting the Siddaramaiah government consistently over a series of killings of Hindu activists by alleged “Jehadi forces,” and accused it of adopting a “soft approach” towards them as part of the Congress’ “vote bank”and “minorities appeasement” politics.

Shah said the Karnataka Assembly polls are important for the BJP, which has won almost all the elections after the Modi government came to power or has improved its tally, while the Congress lost everywhere except for Punjab.

In Tripura, where Assembly polls were held recently, the BJP would win, he said.

“BJP’s electoral success lies in its workers,” Shah said, and asked them to get ready for celebrations.

Calling the BJP a party with a difference, Shah said it fights elections on the strength of the organisation and wins.

Citing the party’s electoral successes in Assam, Manipur and Uttar Pradesh, he said reasons for these were the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP’s booth-level workers.

He said, “from the land of Parashurama and Rani Abbakka let us take the pledge to overthrow the Siddaramaiah government in the coming Assembly polls.”

Rani Abbakka was the legendary queen of Ullal in Dakshina Kannada district, who fought against the Portuguese in the 16th century.

He alleged the Siddaramaiah government “disrespected” Hindu religious places in coastal Karnataka.

The BJP government would try to integrate these cultural treasures with society and bring back their lost glory, he said.

The next BJP government headed by Yeddyurappa would work for the region’s development and restore its lost pride, Shah said.

During his three-day tour, Shah would cover the districts of Dakshina Kannada and Uttara Kannada, where the party has a strong presence, and is trying to further consolidate its vote base.