Daijiworld Media Network - Mysore (SP)
Mysore, Jan 27: Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president R V Deshpande informed that the Congress party will be releasing the list of its candidates for the Loksabha seats in February. "The list of aspirants is being collected and finalized after holding discussions with the party activists. A report will be sent to the high command about the outcome of the discussions. Thereafter, list of candidates will be released before February end," he explained.
"The party has no proposal before itself to enter into an electoral understanding with the JD (S) for the Loksabha election. However, a final decision on the issue will be taken by the party high command. The statement issued by ex-minister D B Chandre Gowda, calling all the secular parties to come together for the election, is his personal opinion. Still, I genuinely feel that there is a need for all the secular parties to come together for defeating communal forces. This understanding should not be confined to elections alone but need to be continued further to be affective," Deshpande opined.
"A meeting of the district presidents and workers of the Congress is being held in Bangalore on Wednesday January 28. A team of 14 persons including myself, KPCC working president D K Shivkumar, Ugrappa, Siddaramaiah and M P Prakash will tour the entire state, holding meetings in all the districts and eliciting opinions from local leaders," he explained.
On February 8, national-level conference is being organized in New Delhi in which Congress leaders from the state will be participating, he informed. Responding to a rumour that Congress leaders Srikantaiah and Shivaram are thinking of deserting the party, Deshpande said that the leaders, while speaking to him, have confirmed that they would continue to be Congressmen.
He also suggested the party leader and ex-deputy chief minister Siddaramaiah not to follow dual principles. "It does not behoove him to own different stands at different times. The state Congress leaders do not have differences of opinion over accommodating Siddaramaiah in a prominent position. It is left to the high command to give him a suitable post. One of the most important attributes necessary for politicians is patience. I am a good example for that," he said.