BENGALURU: The Karnataka Congress has gone into campaign overdrive, with state party president and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar issuing personal letters to all ministers and MLAs, instructing them to collect at least 2 lakh signatures each from their constituencies as part of the nationwide ‘Vote Chor, Gaddi Chod’ (Vote Thief, Quit Office) campaign targeting the Union Government.
The letters underscore the Congress’ intent to make Karnataka a flagship contributor to the protest movement, which accuses the BJP-led Centre of “stealing the people’s mandate through institutional subversion and electoral manipulation.”
In the communication, Shivakumar said the party has set an October 24 deadline for each minister to secure signatures, with the final goal set at 2 lakh.
The campaign is being overseen by AICC General Secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal and AICC Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala, both of whom, the letter warns, will be monitoring daily progress.
“The National General Secretary will be seeking information on the daily quantum of signatures collected, district-wise. You are therefore requested to provide daily updates to the Pradesh Congress Committee so that Karnataka leads the national effort,” Shivakumar wrote.
The drive is expected to culminate in a mass submission of signatures to the President of India in early November.
Congress insiders say Karnataka’s participation is crucial, both symbolically and strategically. “Karnataka is Congress’ strongest state unit right now — the high command wants it to set the tone for national mobilisation,” said a senior KPCC office-bearer.
‘Organisational mission’
With less than a week to meet the targets, ministers have been told to treat the exercise as an “organisational mission” rather than a routine campaign. Daily digital dashboards are being readied at the KPCC headquarters to track constituency-wise numbers, and ministers have been warned that non-performance will be reviewed at the national level.
As the Congress sharpens its anti-BJP pitch ahead of the Lok Sabha campaign cycle, the signature drive is being viewed as both a test of ground machinery and a show of unity under Shivakumar’s leadership — a signal that Karnataka will be at the forefront of the party’s national comeback script.
