P C Vishnunath is a key behind-the-scenes player for the Congress in Karnataka.Eyeing to retain power, Congress president Rahul Gandhi had begun the campaign in Karnataka well before the election dates were announced for the state. While entrusting the responsibility for the state to specially chosen young leaders, Rahul visited Karnataka several times to shore up support.
The Congress has played all the tricks in the book, right from being seen along with the public, students, farmers and aligning its strategy according to the fast-changing situations. Its sole aim is to retain power in the state, while reining in the BJP nationally.
The assembly polls in Karnataka are crucial not only for the party but also for a bunch of young leaders who have been chosen for the job. Karnataka will be the battlefield for these young leaders who face the formidable duo of prime minister Narendra Modi and BJP national president Amit Shah.
P C Vishnunath, who is a key behind-the-scenes player for the Congress in Karnataka, speaks to Onmanorama.
Hasn't the Congress leadership entrusted a big responsibility to leaders like K C Venugopal and you by despatching you to Karnataka, especially when the party is fast losing its political clout?
Yes, it is a big responsibility. When you say the Congress is becoming a minority I have a great historic example to cite. Before the Congress came to power in 2004, before Sonia Gandhi became the party president, the party was at a much more difficult situation. The party was in power only in four states. Naturally, everybody wrote off the Congress. Everybody was asking what can it do nationally with just four States in its kitty. There was an impression that the Congress will just disappear. That is when the BJP came out with its 'India Shining' campaign. From just four states, the Congress came to power in 12. In 2004, the UPA too came to power at the Centre. We repeated our performance in 2009.
We are at a similar situation now. The Congress will begin its victory march from Karnataka. After Karnataka, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh go to polls. The Congress is in a position to win all the three states. Even if the Congress fails, you should realise one thing. In Meghalaya, we were the single-largest party. In Manipur, and in Goa too, the Congress was the single-largest party. If you look at the elections held after the 2014 general elections, you can see that the Congress, which was reduced to just 44 MPs, has been staging a comeback in several states. In Gujarat, where the Congress had zero MPs, we now have 80 MLAs. The Congress has the capability to stage a comeback at any time. Now, under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, the party is run very professionally. We have a vision. The expected changes will surely take place.
Will you be able to capture Karnataka?
Definitely. The Congress will retain power in Karnataka. Last Sunday, seven MLAs of Janata Dal joined the Congress. Rahul just completed his Mysuru tour. Mysuru is the stronghold of Deve Gowda's Janata Dal (Secular). Will anyone join a party or a front which is not doing well? They joined us en masse. When Rahul toured northern Karnataka, two BJP MLAs quit their party and joined us. The Congress has the capacity to send only two MPs to the Rajya Sabha from Karnataka, but we sent three. All these show that the Congress is on the right track.
Social media interventions have become crucial in elections these days. How are you going to use them?
We have been able to successfully merge traditional campaigning methods, new media and new-generation election techniques for Karnataka. Public meetings and townhalls are held. These are known as traditional methods. It is impossible to campaign without new media at this stage. Rahul Gandhi is winning over youth through Twitter. We are utilising all such new media tools. However, the Congress is also successfully carrying out door-to-door campaigning, considered as a traditional method, here. The entire State has been divided into 53,000 booths and Congress workers are visiting every household. Necessary booth committees have been set up to carry out house visits. The strategy is to use both old and new methods to engage people. We never tried to influence people as alleged in the Cambridge Analytica controversy. We will never do such a thing.
Chief minister Siddaramaiah has been using social media to his advantage. He has also displayed how to make the best out of a controversy. Don't you think such interventions should have come a little early?
Siddaramaiah and others follow the traditional style of electioneering. They adopted social media on the directives of the party and they are getting great support. Siddaramaiah is a great orator who can engage tens of thousands of people. Earlier, they used to adopt the traditional campaigning methods. Rahul Gandhi asked them to embrace social media. They followed and are now reaping rich rewards.
Siddaramaiah is a great orator who can engage tens of thousands of people, says P C Vishnunath Providing religious minority status to Lingayats was a masterstroke by the Congress. But won't it upset other communities like Brahmins? There are issues between Lingayats and Veerashaivas.
Both the government and the party haven't done much in this regard. There was such a proposal before the government since long. We just did what was expected by the government. The Congress has no role in it. In such decisions, the party has zero role to play.
The Modi wave is still on. Even in states where it has only two seats, the BJP is forming governments. They are also using the new media to their advantage. Hasn't the Congress fallen behind?
The BJP is forming governments out of thin air by using money power and misusing the powers of governors. It can't happen everywhere. In Karnataka, the BJP had only 40 seats last time and they are not going to get anything more this time. Other parties that could influence voters are few and far between. The BJP itself has admitted that there is no Modi wave in Karnataka. Modi campaigned here but it didn't make any impact. At the same time, Rahul Gandhi visits colleges, talks to common people, and exchange thoughts with students learning Vedas. The prime minister is like a radio. He speaks at big rallies. Nobody gets to see him, not even reporters. Is he holding a single press conference? In comparison, Rahul Gandhi is accessible to all; public, media, students and others. That is our brand value. We will use it.
Rahul Gandhi is accessible to all; public, media, students and others, says P C Vishnunath Seat aspirants are a headache for the party. People are rooting for their children and sons- and daughters-in-law. Recently, social media head Divya Spandana's mother demanded a seat. Seats will have to be shared among both the old and the young. What is the Congress stand on this issue?
For the Congress, this is a crucial election. We will consider only the prospect of victory during candidate selection. If one has no scope to win, caste or community is not going to help. This is not a lucky draw. Even for the sake of the secular fabric of the country, this election is very crucial.
How do you see the challenge from the BJP?
The threat posed by the BJP is not to the Congress but to India. How is the BJP going to become a threat to India? They had said that if they win majority they will rewrite the Constitution. Is this a threat to the Congress or India? In places where they are in power, people are attacked and killed for what they eat, for what they believe in. Is this a challenge to the Congress or India? The BJP gaining power by misleading the public or using other means is a threat to the country. That is why people are now supporting the Congress. People like Sharad Pawar, who were against Sonia Gandhi and had questioned her politics, attended a dinner organised by her. Why did rivals Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav decide to come together? Whey did Mamata Banerjee, who had quit the Congress, decide to support Congress leader Abhishek Singhvi in the Rajya Sabha election? The political landscape is changing. It is heartening to note that Rahul Gandhi has taken over its leadership.
The BJP itself has admitted that there is no Modi wave in Karnataka. Modi campaigned here but it didn't make any impact, says VishnunathIsn't the national media against the Congress? Known as 'Korean media', won't their activities jeopardise your chances in Karnataka? How do you face the challenges raised by such media?
I don't think this is because of any enmity or ideological differences on the part of any media personnel. Major media outlets were bought over by corporates before the 2014 elections. The aim was to gain support for the political business they represent. Using the media, reports that are favourable to the ruling party were published. In return, their commercialised politics got support from the government. This give-and-take deal is going on. After some time, such people lose their credibility and people won't believe what they say. Only media houses that indulged in such work is facing that crisis now.
Today, big news is broken by small websites. Their popularity is a threat to others. We will improve our network through new media. Let the corporate media ignore us. Not even half a percentage of voters in India watch Arnab Goswami's debates. Then what should we fear? If they are able to create a hype it is an attempt to mislead ordinary leaders. They are away from common people. The Congress wouldn't have won a single seat in Gujarat had the villagers there believed in Arnab.
Rahul Gandhi is holding townhall meetings and public gatherings these days. Which of them attract the youth the most?
Townhall meetings and direct interactions have the most impact. Direct interactions with the public are also fruitful. The recent interaction with girls at Maharani College in Mysuru was impressive. Discussions with farmers and village tours are all effective. Lots of villagers wait to see Rahul. Once, a group was waiting for Rahul with buttermilk. They weren't even sure he will make it that day. When Rahul saw them, he stopped and took a bottle full of buttermilk from them. Rahul is creating that type of a relation with people. Public rallies are aimed at energising party workers. In one way they are also good. But direct interactions are more effective. It helps to have a deep connect.
To be continued....
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