The Congress is organising a mega convention in Belagavi on Tuesday hoping to establish its clout in the Mumbai-Karnataka region where the BJP remains the dominant political force. In the Lok Sabha polls, last year, the BJP won six out of the seven seats in the region in a big blow to the Congress which had targeted 20 out of 28 seats in Karnataka.
With AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge and heavyweights Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi in attendance, the Congress is pitching the event, held in the names of Gandhi, Ambedkar and the Constitution, as a precursor to the upcoming local body polls leading up to the assembly polls in 2028.
The Jai Bapu-Jai Bhim-Jai Samvidhan, as the event is named, will target the BJP in the name of threats to the Constitution as the Congress seeks to consolidate the Dalit, backward classes and minority votes. “The Jai Bapu-Jai Bhim-Jai Samvidhan is a convention to send out a big message from Belagavi,” Deputy CM DK Shivakumar said.
Shivakumar, who is also the president of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), is also said to be targeting the 85 seats where the Congress lost in the 2023 assembly polls, to strengthen the party base there. The party is said to be working on a strategy to wrest at least 15 of them in the next election, while hoping that the incumbent lawmakers will retain their seats.
Targeting the BJP, the Dy CM said the saffron party had insulted Ambedkar. “This convention intends to uphold his honour and protect the Constitution for future generations. This is not a political event, and I urge people cutting across party lines to participate in this historic event.”
“We have procured 50,000 Gandhi caps and one lakh badges for the event. Only the Congressmen have an opportunity to protect the legacy of Gandhiji,” Shivakumar said. “More than 60 national level leaders, MPs, CWC members and others are attending the convention. The ministers and MLAs will also participate in the convention.”
The convention comes amid demands within the Congress for tabling of the caste census report before the Cabinet which the government has put off, so far.
