Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s first rally in Karnataka has been shifted to April 9 to coincide with PM Narendra Modi’s visit to the state that day. (Image: Reuters/Twitter/File)
Rahul Gandhi on pet issues like Adani and “decreasing democracy” under PM Narendra Modi can convert what has so far been a ‘local-issue campaign’ by the state Congress into a ‘national-issue campaign’.
Rahul Gandhi’s election campaign entry in Karnataka from Kolar on April 9 is a unique event – one that is being awaited not only by the Congress but also keenly watched by the BJP.
This is because states so far for a ‘national-issue campaign’ on pet issues like Rahul Adani and “diminishing democracy” under Prime Minister Narendra Modi may inevitably be converted into ‘local-issue campaigns’ by the Congress. It is a battleground the BJP also wants to play as it pits its biggest draw in Modi against Rahul and makes the election more about ‘national level issues’.
Two senior BJP ministers, Amit Shah and Mansukh Mandaviya, said at the ‘News18 Rising India Summit’ last week that if the Congress wanted to make it a ‘Rahul vs Modi’ fight in Karnataka, the BJP would concede defeat.
“If he (Rahul) wants to do Modi vs Rahul (in Karnataka), I have no objection. There can be no better formula for BJP than this. Mandaviya also said that Rahul would pave the way for BJP’s victory in Karnataka.
In fact, Rahul’s first rally has been shifted to April 9 to coincide with PM Modi’s visit to Karnataka that day.
national vs state issues
The Congress campaign in Karnataka so far has been focused on state-level issues such as ‘PACIM’ corruption, the caste reservation blunder and the “humiliation” of BJP’s tallest Lingayat leader BS Yeddyurappa after he was dropped as chief minister two years ago. By forming a united front with DK Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah, who have been traveling statewide till now, the Congress has also decided on the candidate ticket smoothly.
What the BJP is hoping for is Rahul querring the pitch. One, his disqualification as MP due to conviction in a criminal defamation case will be used by the saffron camp to say that he had abused the entire OBC community. Rahul has his first rally in Karnataka scheduled in Kolar, where he made the objectionable remarks in 2019. OBCs are a major vote bank in Karnataka, who have been largely Congress voters, and Siddaramaiah is a tall community leader.
The BJP aims to pit the OBCs against the Congress and Modi’s whirlwind campaign in Karnataka is expected to emphasize this point. Rahul’s attack on Modi on the issue of Adani in UK and “declining democracy” in India has already seen the BJP aggressively saying that the former Congress president spoke against the country on foreign soil.
The Prime Minister is expected to focus on this in his campaign in Karnataka, citing “conspiracies” by local and international players to defame India. In Karnataka, Modi will also try to spin the corruption debate, citing Congress’s record over the years.
Almost on gesture, the BJP on Sunday released an exclusive video citing “record corruption” during the UPA days and how the Gandhi family was at the center of such scams. Modi’s campaign will also focus on the “double engine” growth under the BJP in Karnataka and how each vote helped strengthen Modi’s hands. To keep Modi at the center of the campaign, the BJP is not even announcing a chief ministerial face.
Congress won Himachal Pradesh because it kept the election ‘local centric’ with issues like old pension scheme and problems of apple growers. It would be better to stick to the same approach in Karnataka as it is now. Rahul did not campaign in Himachal Pradesh as he was busy with ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’. However, the BJP is now sounding the alarm for a ‘Modi vs Rahul’ fight in Karnataka.
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