BJP president Amit Shah says his party's preparations for re-election in 2019 began the day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government was sworn in in May 2014.

"We started preparing the very next day after the government took oath in 2014," Shah told Aaj Tak executive editor Sweta Singh.

Modi's administration, he said, has tried to improve living standards for the impoverished, governed impartially and decisively, and "boosted India's pride and image."

Shah said Modi was "one of the most popular leaders in the world."

In a wide-ranging discussion, the BJP president spoke to Aaj Tak-India Today about his party's recent losses in Lok Sabha bypolls, the upcoming Karnataka assembly election, and Rahul Gandhi's frequent visits to temples. You can read a comprehensive report on the interview here.

Shah said the BJP would win Karnataka thanks to anti-incumbency and the "craze" for Prime Minister Modi in the state.

Reacting to this social media bloggers has teased this statement BJP only work for the past four years is preparations of elections and governance been ignored.