Manmohan Singh among star campaigners for Rajasthan bypolls; Sonia, Rahul missing

Congress on Thursday released the list of its star campaigners for the Rajasthan bye-polls and named 40 leaders including former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who would be canvassing for the party in the state.

The bye-polls in Rajasthan are happening for two constituencies namely Mandawa and Khinwsar.

The central leadership of the party often stays away from campaigning during bye-polls which is also evident in the Congress list which doesn't have names of Sonia, Rahul or Priyanka Gandhi. Even other senior leaders such as Gulam Nabi Azad, Ahmed Patel, among others are not part of the star-campaigners list.

Hence announcing Singh as the star-campaigner for these seats of Rajasthan by-polls has come as surprise to many. However, it may be noted that Singh was recently elected to Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan.

The campaigners' list also comprises of Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot and Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.

The Congress state unit is taking charge of the campaign as these bye-polls are crucial and it will reflect the report card of Gehlot Gov. The election will also be a litmus test for the party in the state which is facing internal feud.

Congress has fielded Rita Chaudhary from Mandawa and Harendra Mirdha from Khinwsar.

By-bolls across 13 states are scheduled for October 21 and the counting of votes will take place on October 24. These will be the first elections in the country since the Lok Sabha polls were held in April and May. The BJP won the general elections with a thumping majority of 303 seats.