The former Chief Minister and senior Congress leader S.M. Krishna made light of the “Modi wave” in the country and described it as a figment of “imagination”.
He was speaking to presspersons here on Tuesday after calling on litterateur and former Vice-Chancellor of Mysore university D. Javare Gowda, who is recovering after a brief illness.
Mr. Krishna said that he did not perceive a Modi wave anywhere in the country and disagreed with various pre-poll surveys that projected a sweep by the BJP in some States, including Karnataka.
‘Inaccurate surveys’“Many such pre-poll surveys conducted in the past have been inaccurate. This time too, it will be proven to be inaccurate once the election results are out,” he said.
Refuting claims that the Congress had ignored senior leaders, Mr. Krishna said the party was engaged in a balancing act by accommodating both seniors and youngsters and in the process, there may have been some discrepancies. But, there was no intention to slight anyone, he said.
“AICC president Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi have worked hard to bring in equilibrium,” said Mr. Krishna.
On Jaffer ShariefCommenting on the resentment of senior leader C.K. Jaffer Sharief who was denied ticket to contest from Bangalore Central Lok Sabha constituency, Mr. Krishna said there was no question of ignoring Mr. Sharief, whom he described as a senior leader. “Mr. Sharief has not taken any decision yet. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and KPCC president G. Parameshwara have met and spoken to him. Mr. Sharief is one of the senior-most leaders in the Congress and has grown with the party. He has a personal rapport and good equation with a lot of leaders. I am confident he will not take any decision in haste,” said Mr. Krishna.
Later, local Congress leaders, including A.H. Vishwanath, incumbent MP, who is seeking re-election from Mysore, held discussions with Mr. Krishna.
