BENGALURU: Senior Congress leader Tanveer Sait, who was appointed KPCC working president just ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, exuded confidence that the party’s prospects are far better than the BJP’s, and predicted that it will comfortably win 18-20 of the 28 seats in the state.
Sait told TNIE that he had observed a strong anti-incumbency factor working against the Narendra Modi-led BJP government at the Centre and its MPs, which is why the party replaced 12 of its sitting MPs with new faces. The Narasimharaja MLA from Mysuru, who has been made incharge of the minorities wing of the party and Mysuru region, said “if Modi and Amit Shah come to campaign, it will ignite our (Congress) party workers to work hard”.
He clarified that in spite of having respect for the royal Wadiyar family of Mysuru, the Congress looked at Yaduveer Wadiyar as an opponent. “Even in the past, we have seen Srinkantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar winning and losing polls,” he remarked.
Congress candidate M Lakshmana, who has fought for the causes of the people by exposing the wrongdoings of the BJP, instilled the hope that he can be the voice of the people in Parliament and there will be a change in Mysuru this time, is Sait’s analysis. The BJP-JDS alliance will not make any difference as the JDS, in the past two Lok Sabha polls, had tacitly backed BJP MP Pratap Simha, he said.
“I don’t think there was a wave following the consecration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, as BJP has always played with emotional and religious issues. Everywhere, we have a Ram mandira, but without Sita, Laxmana and Hanuman, they are incomplete. BJP even inaugurated an incomplete temple. We have other burning issues, including the economy, inflation and bad governance. We will set the agenda on these issues,” he said. The Constitution of India being under threat is a major issue, he added.
The five guarantees which the Congress implemented after coming to power in Karnataka ensure that the lives of the needy are sustained, he said, and hoped that not only AHINDA (Kannada acronym for minorities, backward classes and Dalits) but people cutting across caste and creed will back the Congress.
The six-time MLA, though, said he does not expect any reward for his work and ruled out the chance of being included in the Siddaramaiah cabinet, in any reshuffle after the polls. “It has hurt the feelings of my supporters but I work for the party’s ideology,” he clarified.
Challenge against IT, ED threats
Sait defended the Congress party fielding over a dozen family members of top leaders, including children of ministers, as facing the polls under the ED and IT department threat is a big challenge. “Winning the polls amid vendetta politics by the BJP government is more important, hence we went with family members as candidates. Persons with a good track record who came forward to fight (including kin of leaders) have been given tickets,” he said.