Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to hold public meetings in key Lok Sabha constituencies of Mandya and Kolar on Wednesday.
“Rahul Gandhi will arrive (in Bengaluru) tomorrow. He will directly visit Mandya and then Kolar. He will return to Bengaluru and conclude the visit to Karnataka with his return flight to Delhi,” Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar told reporters here on Tuesday.
Replying to a query, Shivakumar mentioned that scheduling Priyanka Gandhi’s visit requires coordination due to the limited time available and her commitments in other states.
Despite these challenges, the party has requested her to allocate at least one day for campaigning in Karnataka, he said.
Congress candidate Venkataramane Gowda is in a direct fight with JDS leader HD Kumaraswamy, former Karnataka chief minister, in Mandya. Both candidates have their respective strengths and support bases, making it a closely watched battle.
Similarly, in Kolar, the fight is between the Congress party’s KV Gowtham and JDS party’s M Mallesh Babu. Both parties will be deploying their resources and strategies to ensure victory in this constituency.
The 2019 general elections in Karnataka resulted in a dominant performance by the BJP, which secured 25 out of the 28 constituencies in the state. This was a significant setback for the Congress, which managed to win only one seat.
Moreover, an independent candidate Sumalatha Ambareesh backed by the BJP also emerged victorious, further strengthening the party’s position in the state.
The JDS, which had formed an alliance with the Congress for the elections, could secure only one seat, indicating the challenges faced by the alliance in countering the BJP’s electoral prowess.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah expressed confidence that the Congress party will win between 15 to 20 seats in the upcoming elections in the state.
Given the competitive nature of these elections, especially with the Congress facing JDS in both Mandya and Kolar, Rahul Gandhi’s visit could play a significant role in rallying support for the party’s candidates.
It will be interesting to see the strategies and messages the former AICC President brings to these public meetings as the Congress party seeks to improve its performance compared to the previous elections in Karnataka.
