Guwahati: As the UPA government battles a series of scams, the BJP national executive beginning in Guwahati on Saturday is expected to further sharpen its offensive against the ruling alliance at the Centre on the issue of corruption.
This is the first meeting of the national executive of the party after the 2G spectrum allocation controversy exploded into a major scam that saw an escalating standoff between the government and the opposition over the issue of JPC probe into it.
BJP sees the situation as an opportunity after two successive stints in the opposition. Buoyed by the recent revelations on the Bofors pay-offs case by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, BJP will prepare a strategy for taking on the government on the corruption cases that have come to light in 2010.
BJP also plans to hold more rallies against corruption across the country to keep the issue alive till the Budget Session of Parliament.
BJP has now upped the ante by attacking Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for his alleged failure to check corruption in government and had made a big issue out of the Supreme Court's observation as to why he did not take action for long in the 2-G Spectrum allocation issue.
This is the first national executive of BJP after senior leader Jaswant Singh was given the responsibility of winning over more allies and improving relations with the four parties already in the NDA-fold.
The party is eyeing allies like AIADMK in Tamil Nadu, AGP in Assam, INLD in Haryana, TDP and TRS in Andhra Pradesh which had been a part of NDA in the past. Incidentally, Jaswant Singh has a good rapport with leaders like Jayalalithaa and N Chandrababu Naidu.
The impressive victory of BJP and JD(U) in Bihar assembly polls has come as a shot in the arm for BJP which plans to strengthen NDA in case a snap Lok Sabha poll is announced.
BJP President Nitin Gadkari, who has completed one year at the party helm, is expected to utilise the opportunity to devise the strategy ahead in consultation with Leaders of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj in Lok Sabha and Arun Jaitley in Rajya Sabha, under the guidance of senior leader LK Advani.
The national executive meeting is significant as assembly elections in Assam, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Pudducherry are not far away.
In Assam, BJP is banking big on the issue of illegal immigration for a giving a tough fight to ruling Congress seeking its third consecutive stint in power.
The issue of illegal immigration from Bangladesh, which allegedly threatens to change the demographic profile of Assam, will dominate the national executive along with the issue of corruption cases facing Congress-led UPA government.
Resolutions on the two issues will be passed during the two-day meeting.
The party may also take a call on how to tackle the embarrassment over continuance of Karnataka Chief Minister BS
Yeddyurappa who faces graft and nepotism charges in land allotments to his kin.
Now that the local bodies elections in the state are over, the party may mull over the leadership issue in Karnataka.
Gadkari also plans to take up organisational issues with state unit presidents of the party. This includes membership drive, fund collection and programmes aimed at reaching out to the people on the issues of corruption and price rise.
The poll-bound states are likely to receive more attention during the conclave though BJP does not have much at stake there with the exception of Assam.
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