Contest here: Karnataka Cong to Rahul

The Congress in Karnataka is learnt to have requested its high command to consider a constituency in the State in case party Vice-President Rahul Gandhi decides to contest from two seats in the next general election. For some time now, the party high command is learnt to be concerned with the rising popularity of the AAP. Its decision to field its popular leader Kumar Vishwas against Rahul in Amethi in Uttar Pradesh has been met with some amount of trepidation by the Congress. Early this week, two top leaders — State Congress President G Parameshwara and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah — were called to Delhi for a meeting with Sonia Gandhi. During the meeting, the need to have a fail-proof constituency for Rahul was also discussed. Karnataka has always been a safe bet for Congress even when the rest of the country was swept by an anti-Congress wave. In 1977, when the Janata Party came to power, Congress won 26 of the 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka. Trend-setter Late PM Indira Gandhi, who was in political wilderness after her party’s defeat in the Lok Sabha election, was looking for a safe constituency to return to the national scene. She chose a constituency in Karnataka, Chikmaglur, for getting elected to the Lower House during the by-elections in 1979. After that it was the turn of Sonia, who opted for Bellary in Karnataka as a second constituency apart from Rae Bareli during the 1999 elections as the Congress felt her chances of retaining the seat in Uttar Pradesh were not so good. The situation seems to be similar today. Karnataka happens to be the only State in the South which is expected to see Congress gain an upper hand. What has made the Congress confident about Rahul’s ability to win a seat here is that during his tour of the State last week, he drew huge response from the crowds. Party leaders say they could actually see him connect to the people here. “He may still be a bit of a greenhorn in politics, but his sincerity came across during his interaction with the people,” one of the Congress ministers told Business Line. Rahul also undertook a road show from Tumkur to Mysore via Mandya, traversing about 150 km, where he met several local leaders. During a public rally, he sought the blessings of former union minister SM Krishna by touching his feet. Krishna is held in high esteem by the local population and this gesture must have gone down well with them. Party leaders say that the decision to contest from a second constituency solely rests with Rahul and Sonia, but firmly believe that there can’t be a safer bet for him than one of the constituencies in Karnataka. Source :  http://www.samachar.com/Contest-here-Karnataka-Cong-to-Rahul-ocswMrifgjg.html