Karnataka polls: PM, Sonia, Rahul to undertake campaign

Cong sees prospects of dislodging BJP govt, returning to power

The Congress party in Karnataka has planned a blitzkrieg for the high-stake May 5 Assembly polls. Manmohan Singh, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi are all slated to criss-cross the state during a 10-day campaign, starting from April 23.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would join the electioneering for a day, addressing meetings in Hubli, Dharwad and Bangalore on April 29, KPCC President G Parameshwara told reporters here, announcing the programme that may be subject to change. Rahul Gandhi is expected to set the tone for the party's poll pitch with meetings in Bellary, Raichur and Bijapur on April 23. This would be followed by rallies in Kolar, Tumkur and Haveri on April 28 and in Mandya, Hassan and Shimoga on May 1, he said. The Congress president is scheduled to address rallies in Mangalore and Chikamaglur on April 26, Gulbarga and Belgaum on April 30 and Mysore and Bangalore on May 2, Parameshwara said.

The Congress is playing for high stakes in the polls, as it sees the prospect of dislodging the first-ever Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the south and coming back to power. The party had fared badly in successive elections held after the BJP government came to power but as infighting and a series of corruption charges took a heavy toll on the ruling party, the Congress showed signs of recovery.

After the recent elections to the urban local bodies in which the Congress pushed the BJP to the third spot, along with the KJP of former party strongman B S Yeddyurappa, it feels within striking distance of power. Parameshwara also released a booklet highlighting the alleged misdeeds of the BJP government, particularly in the Bangalore civic body which, it alleged, had become a cesspool of corruption.