Davanagere, Mar 23 The much-publicised 'Bharat Nirman' rally here today marked the beginning of the Congress campaign in Karnataka for the coming Lok Sabha elections.
Congress supremo Sonia Gandhi launched the campaign at the mammoth rally of more than three lakh people in the afternoon at Bapuji MBA College Grounds soon after her arrival here at 1.20 pm, 35 minutes behind schedule.
She was accompanied by AICC(I) General Secretary in charge of party affairs in Karnataka Ghulam Nabi Azad.
People had started arriving at the venue from 10 am itself. They were ferried from various parts of North Karnataka in 1500 KSRTC and 990 private buses. Nearly two lakh people had already gathered at the venue by 12 noon.
Ghulam Nabi Azad, KPCC President R.V. Deshpande, Working President D.K. Shivakumar, Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge and former Dy. Chief Minister Siddharamaiah were on the dais with Sonia Gandhi.
The Congress supremo, who arrived at Hubli by a special flight from Delhi, travelled to Davanagere by helicopter.
A large number of Congress leaders including MPs, Legislators, former MPs, former Legislators, probable candidates including former Minister H. Viswanath, probable candidate from Mysore, are attending the rally being held under tight security.
The town was free from the menace of buntings, cutouts and posters in view of the strict election code of conduct. Only a few small cutouts of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were seen at the venue.
Former Union Minister C.K. Jaffer Sharief, a strong contender for Congress ticket in Bangalore North, was among the leaders present. There were strong rumours that he may skip the rally as he is unhappy about the High Command's reported decision to field him in Bangalore Central.
AICC(I) General Secretary B.K. Hariprasad, former Chief Ministers S.M. Krishna and S. Bangarappa, Mallikarjun Kharge, former Ministers M.P. Prakash, Dr. G. Parameswar and T.B. Jayachandra, former Union Minister Margaret Alva, CWC member Motamma, H.T. Sangliana, veteran Congressman Shyamunur Shivashankarappa (founder of Bapuji Institutions) and other top leaders were seen waiting near the dais before Sonia Gandhi's arrival.
