Bengaluru: The factional feud within the BJP Karnataka unit surfaced during the core committee meeting chaired by the party’s national general secretary and Karnataka in-charge Radha Mohan Das Agarwal, party sources said on Wednesday.

Top party sources told PTI that the issue of Vijayapura BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal and his faction publicly targeting the BJP state president Vijayendra and his father and former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa surfaced during the meeting.

Vijayendra’s loyalists sought to know during the meeting about the action taken against Yatnal for putting the party in an embarrassing situation time and again, which was hampering the BJP’s prospects, the sources added.

Yatnal had recently called Vijayendra “corrupt” who had amassed wealth through unfair means. He also appealed to Yediyurappa to pave way for others instead of succumbing to infatuation for his son.

Agarwal told the MLAs that the party high command was aware of it and would take necessary steps. The MLAs should not lose their focus on strengthening the party at the ground level, he said.

The committee, according to sources, discussed the appointment of district level party office bearers, including the district presidents. This will finally culminate in choosing the party state president, which is presently occupied by Shikaripura MLA B Y Vijayendra.

In this regard, names of three probable candidates from each district will be sent to the party high command, which will choose one among them on the merit basis, BJP MLC C T Ravi told reporters.

“We are keeping the social justice and women empowerment in mind while selecting candidates for the district level BJP organisation,” Ravi explained.

According to Malleswaram MLA and former Deputy Chief Minister C N Ashwath Narayan, suggestions were sought to strengthen the party.

“There was no discussion about the party state president. The suggestions of the MLAs were sought and accordingly they gave their view point,” Narayan told reporters on Tuesday night.

He added that a clear message had been delivered to ensure that the party’s internal matters should remain “within the four walls” and should not go out.

To a question about the squabbling in the party, Narayan said Agarwal told the MLAs that the central leadership would take note of it but the question that was asked to the BJP MLAs was about their contribution to strengthening the party.

Agarwal also discussed the poll debacle in the assembly bypolls in all the three segments – Sandur, Shiggaon and Channapatna, a source said.

In Shiggaon, BJP MP and former Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai’s son Bharath Bommai lost to Congress candidate Yasir Ahmed Khan Pathan while in Sandur Congress candidate E Annapurna defeated BJP candidate Bangaru Hanumantha.

In Channapatna, Union Minister and the JD(S) second-in-command H D Kumaraswamy’s son Nikhil Kumaraswamy was defeated by Congress candidate C P Yogeeshwara.

While discussing party’s rout in Sandur, the members put the blame on former minister B Sriramulu, top party sources told PTI.

Upset by the charges, Sriramulu offered to quit the party. He told the committee members that he toiled hard during the election and put all his efforts to ensure the party’s victory. Yet, BJP candidate Hanumantha lost in the bypoll.

According to sources close to Sriramulu, he was upset with the Gangavathi MLA G Janardhana Reddy for allegedly giving wrong feedbacks to the party high command against him.

Reddy and Sriramulu were close friends, who have now fallen apart, sources said.

“There is a conspiracy going on to finish off Sriramulu politically,” a source close to him (Sriramulu) said.