Pulled up, ministers queue up to please Venugopal

Many of the ministers in the Siddaramaiah Cabinet queued up to meet AICC general secretary in-charge of Karnataka K C Venugopal on Wednesday, a day after they were pulled up for skipping a meeting of the party's newly appointed office-bearers.

Only five out of 30 ministers attended a meeting chaired by Venugopal and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president G Parameshwara on Tuesday. The latter was miffed at those who were absent.

It is learnt that the ministers told Venugopal they could not attend the meet because they were busy with programmes in districts they are in-charge of.  

Earlier in the day, Venugopal held talks with some progressive thinkers.

Bus travel for Rahul?

Congress president Rahul Gandhi will undertake a 3-day visit to Karnataka starting February 10, Venugopal said. Rahul is also expected to cover parts of the Hyderabad-Karnataka region.

It is planned that Rahul will travel in a bus instead of his motorcade to ensure maximum connectivity with people during the tour. Roadshows have also been planned. Rahul is expected to address a Scheduled Tribes convention in Hosapete (Ballari), a farmer convention in Chikkaballapur, a students' meet at Mysuru and a party rally in Bengaluru.

"The Congress has made sufficient preparation for the upcoming Assembly election. But I'm not at liberty to discuss our strategy," Venugopal said. Party office-bearers have been asked to ensure Rahul's tour is a success.