May commence election campaign on party’s foundation day

Mumbai: With an eye on the 2019 general and Assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is all set to sound the poll bugle at its foundation day rally at Bandra Kurla Complex on April 6, which will be addressed by party president Amit Shah.

Mr. Shah is also scheduled to hold meetings with party leaders, elected representatives, and organisational in-charge throughout Friday. The party has decided to make his trip to a big hit, by organising a bike rally from the airport to the BKC on Thursday evening.

“He (Mr. Shah) will hold a meeting of party’s core committee on Thursday night. He might address a press conference on Friday after the rally, and will also be interacting with BJP legislators and senior leaders on Friday evening,” said Mumbai BJP president Ashish Shelar.

The BJP’s state unit chief, Raosaheb Danve, said more than 50,000 buses and vehicles, and 28 special trains will ferry workers from across Maharashtra and even from other states. Interestingly, the BJP will shell out ₹5 crore only on hiring the trains. “The BJP intends to have one crore members in the state. We have a team of 25 youths, comprising women, Dalits, OBCs and Adivasis, for manning each booth. There are 315 booths in each Assembly constituency,” Mr. Danve said.

Answering a question as to whether the rally can be viewed as the formal launch of the BJP’s electoral campaign, Mr. Danve said,“Yes, you can say that.”

“After the BJP’s BKC rally in 2014, power was changed in the country. Similarly, this mega rally will enthuse party cadre, and the impact would be seen nationwide,” he said.

25% extra on every seat

For the special trains, the Railways will charge 25% extra on every seat. Organisations, who book these trains for the rally, will have to pay for the complete booking capacity. Railway officials said normally, each train has 17 to 18 coaches, which has a mix of general class and sleeper class. The rate per train depends on where the train is coming and the full fare from point to point. The Railways will also charge a waiting fee of ₹900 per coach per hour when the train is stationed at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, said a senior official. The trains will come to Mumbai from three zones: the Central Railway, South Central Railway, and the South East Central Railway.