Congress to hold meetings of Karnataka, Kerala leaders

Taking forward its exercise to plan the Lok Sabha campaign much in advance, Congress will be holding meetings of its Karnataka and Kerala leaders here on Wednesday, a day after the Opposition meeting.

Instructions have gone to leaders from both states to be present here on Wednesday, sources said. This will be the third such meeting on Lok Sabha elections after Maharashtra and north-eastern states.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, former party chief Rahul Gandhi and Congress General Secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal will attend both meetings. Congress election strategist Sunil Kanugolu, who has been tasked to design the campaign, will also attend the meeting.

The meetings of states much ahead of the Lok Sabha election is the first of its kind for the Congress. Earlier, the party held meetings of five states where Assembly polls are scheduled later this year. At these meetings, DH reported on July 13, the Congress leadership is settling discord between leaders and set state-specific campaign plans.

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"Congress is changing and we are serious about the elections. We are also accommodative. We are giving space to junior partners and they are reciprocating it too," a senior Congress leader told DH.

Congress leaders said that their aim is to get more than 120 seats, which will substantially bring the BJP numbers down. Congress is the main force in states like Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand and would want to fight almost all seats.

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee wants Congress to play second fiddle in West Bengal and in a barter, she will support the party in other states where it is the major party. Even if the Congress is willing to accommodate, CPI(M)-led Left Front is unlikely to follow this line. AAP and Congress will similarly have a showdown on Delhi and Punjab.

Sources said Congress also expects a better show in states like Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand where it lost almost all seats. "We have momentum in these states and we will surely win a good number of seats here," a senior leader expressed confidence.

The party also believes if they win big in the Assembly elections later this year and create a perception that it can be the fulcrum of the fight back against the BJP, parties like BJD, BRS and YSR Congress would fall in line.