Karnataka: Priyanka to campaign in Chikamagaluru which gave political rebirth to Indira Gandhi

Bengaluru: AICC General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will arrive in Chikkamagaluru district in Karnataka on Wednesday to campaign for the Congress.

After facing defeat in Rae Bareli in the 1978 elections, Priyanka Gandhi's grandmother and former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had contested from Chikmagalur Lok Sabha seat in bypolls and won.

Priyanka Vadra will visit historical Rambhapuri and Sringeri Mutts in the district and campaign in Balehonnur town in N R Pura taluk for Congress candidates. The seat is now called Udupi-Chikmagalur and is presently represented by Union Minister for State for Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Shobha Karandlaje.

Once a stronghold of Congress, the seat is now considered as BJP's bastion. National General Secretary C.T. Ravi hails from the district. The controversy surrounding Bababudangiri Dattatreya Peetha in the district has polarised the issue. The Hindu activists often refer Datta Peetha as Ayodhya of Karnataka.

The Congress leader will arrive in Chamarajanagar district and hold an interaction programme at the G.V. Gowda First Grade College in Hanur. Karnataka Congress President D.K. Shivakumar and State In-Charge Randeep Singh Surjewala are also going to participate in the programme.

Priyanka Gandhi is campaigning in Karnataka from Tuesday and attacking the ruling BJP. She had charged that the BJP government had looted Rs 1.5 lakh crore during its tenure in Karnataka.

While addressing a huge public rally, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra stated that the people's money has reached the residences of ministers and leaders. BJP has betrayed the trust, faith of people.

"If I had Rs 1.5 lakh crore, 100 All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), 117 ESI Hospitals, 750 kilometers of Metroline, 2,250 kilometers of expressway and 30 lakh houses could have been constructed. What happened to that money? It is in the residences of BJP leaders," she charged.