Even as there has been increasing speculation over the not-so-far-off transfer of power in Karnataka, it looks like the Congress party is watching every move of Janata Dal (S) and its president H D Deve Gowda with interest.
It was none other than Congress president Sonia Gandhi who wanted to know about the strategy of the coalition partner in the state.
“What stand is Mr Gowda going to take ?” she asked the  MPs whom she had summoned for a meeting ahead of the polls slated for Thursday.
A couple of the MPs answered. They said Mr Gowda’s party may abstain from voting. “Has he announced his decision ?” the Congress president asked. Not yet, came the reply.
Ms Gandhi did not speak further — she spoke to some senior MPs like minister M V Rajasekharan before ending the seven-minute meeting.
Oscar’s tips
Another minister Oscar Fernandes explained how votes should be cast in the elections.
The labour minister informed the MPs that there would be only two names on the ballot paper —that of United Progressive Alliance (UPA) nominee Pratibha Patil and her opponent Bhairon Singh Shekhawat.
 He added that a small straight line, like how numerical “one” is written, should be marked against Ms Patil’s name.
He cautioned that Roman numeral ‘I’ should not be written against her name lest the vote would be invalid.
Congress sources pointed out that it was no surprise that Ms Gandhi asked the Gowda question as every move of every political parties — JD, BJP and Congress — would be watched with interest by the other parties from now on.
“The stand that Mr Gowda will take in Thursday’s election may be just for the Presidential election.
But it looks like a strategic decision which will have its significance in future too,”a senior Congress MP pointed said.
Confusing signals
Although it is a partner in the government in the state, even the BJP is watching the JD (S) moves, mostly with concern. With the statements of the JD (S) leaders sending confusing signals, the BJP is tense.
For the moment, however, its leaders can hardly do anything but keep their fingers crossed.