The Hindu : Karnataka News : BJP, JD(S) have conceded defeat to Congress: Kharge

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Tuesday, May 06, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka

BJP, JD(S) have conceded defeat to Congress: Kharge

Special Correspondent

CONFIDENT: Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president M. Mallikarjun Kharge addressing a party workers’ convention at Chitapur in Gulbarga district on Monday.

CHITAPUR (GULBARGA DISTRICT): Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president M. Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday launched the party’s campaign for the third phase of the Assembly elections in Gulbarga district by declaring that the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Janata Dal (S) have already conceded their defeat to the Congress.

Addressing a party workers convention at a jam-packed kalyan mantap in Chitapur town, Mr. Kharge said that the statement of the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, L.K. Advani, that the BJP was prepared to sit in the Opposition benches and the Janata Dal (S) leaders’ claim that no party could come to power in the State without their support, only showed that the two parties were psychologically prepared for the defeat staring in their faces.

He said that the “unprecedented” response to the Congress indicated a strong pro-Congress wave sweeping the State and the party was confident of getting a comfortable majority in the elections to come back to power.

He criticised BJP State unit president D.V. Sadananda Gowda for picking holes in his statement about his erstwhile Assembly constituency Gurmitkal and his (Mr. Kharge’s) emotional response on the occasion of filing his nomination papers in Chitapur Assembly constituency.

Political future

“When presspersons wanted to know my reaction on leaving Gurmitkal, which returned me for eight terms, and choosing Chitapur Assembly constituency, I was overcome with emotion and wept expressing my love and affection to the people of Gurmitkal who were responsible for shaping my political future,” Mr. Kharge said.

Mr. Kharge in a raised voice declared that the people of Chitapur Assembly constituency would teach a lesson to the BJP State unit president by ensuring that the BJP candidate lost his election deposit.

Referring to a large section of Janata Dal(S) leaders, including eight zilla panchayat members, and scores of taluk panchayat members in Chitapur, Shahapur and other taluks joining the Congress, Mr. Kharge said that to ensure the victory of the party candidates, there should be unity and there should be no room for any factionalism.

“The new comers and the old timers in the party should blend together to make a winning team,” he said.

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