Karnataka Elections 2023: Rahul Gandhi on a two-day visit to poll-bound Karnataka

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday arrived in poll-bound Karnataka for a two-day visit to take part in a host of events, including a party rally in Kolar, which is currently taking place.

This is the maiden visit of Gandhi to the state after his disqualification from the Lok Sabha following his conviction in a 2019 defamation case.

It must be noted that during the 2019 Lok Sabha election campaign in Kolar, Rahul Gandhi made the Modi surname remark, which led to his conviction by a Gujarat court and his subsequent disqualification from Parliament.

As part of his visit, Rahul Gandhi will also interact with the 'Pourakarmika', the sanitation workers and street vendors in the state capital today.

After the meeting, he will inaugurate the newly-built Indira Gandhi Bhawan, office and auditorium with a seating capacity of 750 people, in the city.

The leader will stay at a hotel in Bengaluru tonight. On Monday, he will take a special flight from the HAL airport to Bkhalki in Bidar district, where he will address a public meeting.

Congress working president Eshwar Khandre is contesting from Bhalki.

Rahul Gandhi will address another public meeting in Humnabad in the same district. The Congress has fielded Rajashekar Basavaraj Patil in this assembly segment.

In the afternoon, the Gandhi scion will travel to Hyderabad by helicopter from where he will fly back to Delhi. For the 224-seat assembly, the Congress has so far announced candidates for 209 seats, including 124 in the first list, 42 in the second list and 43 in the third.

The party is yet to announce seats of 15 more candidates.

(With inputs from PTI)

Also Read: US emerges as India's biggest trading partner in FY23 at $128.55 billion

Also Watch: IPL 2023: Rohit Sharma-led Mumbai Indians vs Nitish Rana-led Kolkata Knight Riders, Hardik Pandya-led GT vs Sanju Samson-led RR match today, Players, Match timings, toss; Highlights from RCB vs DC, LSG vs PBKS