Rahul sets eyes on state elections

[1]

Congress general secretary, Rahul Gandhi's effort to "play a larger role" in the party's national affairs in the days to come, is likely to begin from Karnataka. Sources said that Mr Gandhi, of late, has been taking more interest in knowing the problems Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) is facing so that decisive moves can be made well before the state goes to polls in 2013.

Although, Mr Gandhi has initiated a similar dialogue process with second rung leaders from various states like Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat, as of now, Karnataka seems to be a "safe bet" before taking control of party affairs at the national level, said the sources.

A source close to Mr Gandhi said, "He is keen on ensuring Karnataka does not go the way Punjab did where the party, despite having a good chance of coming to power, lost to the Akalis. Therefore, he has been in regular touch with second and third rung leaders in the state to know how the party be brought back to power."

The source added that Mr Gandhi has already interacted with nearly 25-30 legislators and various leaders belonging to different camps in the last two months to obtain first hand information on the party's strengths and weakness. "In Punjab, the party made mistakes by relying heavily on "time-tested leaders" and became complacent instead of being more vigilant. The same happened in Uttarakhand though the party finally came to power. Ignoring the opinions of second and third rung leaders at that time, cost the party dear. Therefore, Mr Gandhi has started eliciting opinions of all such leaders in all states going to polls in 2013 or in 2014," the source explained.

The source added that the Congress experiment of announcing the CM candidate ahead of the polls in Punjab backfired where as in Uttarakhand, the party could not succeed in putting an end to factionalism. “Going by the discussions and Mr Gandhi's keenness to know about state affairs, it is evident that he will lead the poll campaign in Karnataka and even have a decisive say in the selection of candidates,” a leader who met Mr Gandhi disclosed on the condition of anonymity.