Rahul to sound Congress poll bugle in Telangana on July 2

HYDERABAD: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi would sound the poll bugle of the party for the coming Assembly elections in Telangana by addressing a public meeting at Khammam on Sunday. Congress State Legislature Party (CLP) leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka's 'padayatra' would also conclude at the rally. Gandhi would felicitate Vikramarka, who began his foot march near Adilabad, covering 1,360 km in 108 days as on Saturday, party sources said.

At the meeting, former Khammam MP Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy would formally join the Congress. Srinivas Reddy and ex-minister Jupally Krishna Rao recently announced their decision to join the party.

The victory of Congress in recent Karnataka elections has given a boost to the party unit in neighbouring Telangana. Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president and MP A Revanth Reddy has said the party would end the BRS rule in state with the rally in Khammam. Reddy said Congress would sound the bugle for elections with the Khammam rally and expressed confidence that the meeting would be attended by more people compared to the public meet organised earlier by ruling BRS in the town.

Aiming to win the Assembly polls scheduled to be held later this year in Telangana, the Congress is making elaborate arrangements to make the rally being attended by Gandhi, a huge success.

The party is also seeking to ward off the challenge from BJP which is making efforts to emerge as the alternative to ruling BRS. BJP had won two assembly bypolls and came up with good performance in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) elections during the last couple of years posing a threat of occupying the main opposition space held by Congress. Congress has been the major opposition party in Telangana since state formation in 2014.