Sonia: Work with Parameshwar

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Ruling out the possibility of a change of guard in the pradesh Congress committee, the Congress high command has asked leaders of the state unit to work as a team and get into poll-mode in order to ensure a victory for the party in next year’s elections to the Legislative Assembly.

KPCC president, Dr G Parameshwar, who returned to the city after a meeting with AICC leaders in New Delhi on Wednesday, told Deccan Chronicle that four teams would shortly embark on a tour of drought-hit districts. “We will constitute four teams to tour four divisions before submitting reports to both the state government and Union government,” he said adding that this would be followed by a meeting with district unit heads in order to identify problems and issues in respective areas.

“This process will take at least 10 days after which we will launch a state-wide tour. The tour will cover all the 224 constituencies. Our slogan Congressige Banni, Badalavane Tanni will be rechristened Shankha Naada or Dasha Ashvamedha, and will be modelled after the famous ‘Panchajanya Yatra’ undertaken by S.M. Krishna before he became the Chief Minister in 1999,” he added.

He said the next step would be selection of candidates by committees of the state unit which would visit each of the 224 constituencies, followed by a launch of the poll campaign. Besides, the state unit would also organise a series of conventions of the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, minorities, women, farmers and Seva Dal workers.

Dr Parameshwar said the party leaders would strive to improve the tally in Bangalore city and Mumbai-Karnataka in next year’s polls. “We have conducted a study on tickets given by each of the three parties and number of seats won by them (in 2008). “It is not right to say that the BJP is a Lingayat party, and Congress is not. Our performance in the Cauvery basin was also good, but we have to improve particularly in Mumbai Karnataka and coastal parts. We expect a 5 per cent swing in our favour which can take out tally to 140 seats," he added. He said the party would shortly constitute a campaign committee and another one to formulate the manifesto.