Rahul Gandhi to address six public meetings in Telangana

Hyderabad: Congress President Rahul Gandhi is slated to address six public meetings in Telangana, where the party would be able to win "many seats" in the coming Lok Sabha elections, a senior party functionary said Wednesday.

"As per the programme, Rahul Gandhi would address six meetings", the AICC in-charge of Telangana, Rama Chandra Khuntia, a former MP, told PTI.

Telangana, which has 17 Lok Sabha segments, goes to the polls in the first phase on April 11.

The Congress has named candidates for all constituencies, except Khammam.

In last year's Assembly elections, the Congress suffered a humiliating defeat, winning only 19 seats in the 119-member House.

Khuntia said the Lok Sabha polls would be mainly between the Congress and BJP in the country.

"KCR (Telangana Rashtra Samiti President and Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao) has no presence at the national level. TRS is a regional party", he said.

Khuntia said the BJP has only a "nominal" presence in Telangana. "Other than the Congress (and TRS), there is no presence of any other party in Telangana", he said.

"Because it's national elections, it will be Congress versus BJP. But in Telangana, BJP has no presence. We (Congress) will be able to get many seats", he said.

On reason for fielding Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee President Uttam Kumar Reddy, who would be contesting from Nalgonda Lok Sabha segment, Khuntia said the party wanted to send a message to the party cadre.

"All important leaders -- Uttam Kumar Reddy, A Revanth Reddy and Komatireddy Venkat Reddy -- are contesting in the elections so that the defeat of the Congress party in the Assembly elections should not demoralise the cadre that we are on a weak footing", he said.