The Election Commission on Friday recommended the disqualification of 20 Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs over charges of holding ‘office of profit’. The recommendation has been sent to President Ram Nath Kovind for his approval.

They are accused of holding office of Parliamentary Secretary without the concurrence of Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor.

Twitter was abuzz with reactions following the development.

BJP leader and leader of Opposition in the Delhi assembly Vijender Gupta tweeted: “Better late than never, EC Election disqualifies 20 AAP MLAs for holding ‘office of profit’. The AAP govt has much to answer to the public for their political impropriety as Delhi is headed for mid-term #elections. Will request Hon’ble President for speedy approval.”

In a second tweet he demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal: “Disqualification of 20 AAP MLAs is a huge moral defeat for CM @ArvindKejriwal. It has put his leadership in peril. He must resign on ethical grounds.”

Read more: Know Delhi AAP MLAs disqualified by EC | Complete list

Priti Gandhi, the National executive member of the BJP, tweeted: “Election Commission disqualifies 20 AAP MLAs for holding ‘office of profit’, sends recommendation to President. Egg on the face of pseudo-Krantikari’s!”

Joining the demand for Kejriwal’s resignation, Delhi Congress president Ajay Maken wrote on Twitter: “Kejriwal has no right to continue. Half of his cabinet ministers removed on corruption charges! 20 MLAs who were enjoying ministerial perks would be disqualified! Where is Lokpal? The MLAs and Ministers enjoying perks of power and foreign travel-Where is political probity?”

Speaking to reporters, Maken said that former Congress president Sonia Gandhi, too, had resigned from her position in 2006 over a similar controversy. “Why is the AAP afraid of resigning and contesting?” he asked adding that the party will hold demonstrations from Monday across Delhi.

BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said, “They (the AAP) used to play with the Constitution. Today the Constitution has shown them the mirror…Do they still have the morality of continuing (as Delhi government)?

“The self-guilt was quite evident with the fact that Kejriwal tried to bring in a law in June 2015. They tried to retrospectively keep the office of Parliamentary Secretaries, out of the list of office-of-profits.”

BJP Delhi president Manoj Tiwari said, “AAP has always been violating the law. The party has been creating Constitutional problems. This (the decision) will make the AAP realise that India is governed by the Constitution. We would have been happy had this decision come 20 months ago because then the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government wouldn’t have had an opportunity to loot Delhi for 20 more months. The BJP welcomes the EC decision. We are ready to fight elections even if we have to do so tomorrow.”

In defence, Raghav Chadha, National Spokesperson of AAP, claimed that the recommendation is vendetta politics.

“EC hasn’t even heard the OoP matter on merits and now makes ill-founded recommendations without giving AAP MLAs an opportunity of being heard. Blatant violation of principles of natural justice. This is taking vendetta to next level,” he wrote on Twitter.

AAP spokesperson Nagendra Sharma attacked the Modi government and the Election Commission in a series of tweets: “What (the) Modi government appointed Election Commission is leaking to the media is a recommendation made without hearing the arguments of MLAs on the false allegation of office of profit. Such a blatantly biased recommendation will not stand scrutiny in court of law.

“This must be the first ever recommendation in EC history where a recommendation has been sent without even hearing the main matter on merits. No hearing took place in the EC on the point of office of profit.”

Talking to reporters Saurabh Bhardwaj said, “There is no credible information. All reports are based on sources. I want to ask if people from constituencies of these 21 MLAs have seen them utilising government facilities like car, house or salary.”

The Election Commission has refused to comment on the recommendation.

The Centre has approved 2018 as the ‘Year of Millets’ to boost the sunrise agri industry and production of the cereal, Union Minister Sadananda Gowda on Friday said.

“The central government has approved 2018 as year of millets to encourage its production and boost this sunrise agri industry. We did it on Karnataka Agriculture Minister Krishne Byre Gowda’s request,” he said addressing organics and millets 2018 international trade fair here.

Speaking on the occasion, Krishne Byre Gowda said the government hopes to bring about a change in dietary habits and promote a more sustainable future.

Among many companies, brands such as MTR Foods, Mother India Agro Foods, Nature-Bio Foods, Big Basket and TAFE have set up their stalls at the event.

Britannia Industries Limited Managing Director Varun Berry said the company currently produces roughly 110 tonnes of biscuits in India.

“We expect to expand the health biscuit category by introducing millet lines and other grain-based lines,” he added.

The event is showcasing organic crops and millets through exclusive pavilions and stalls of partnering states such as Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Meghalaya, Uttarakhand, Haryana and Chhattisgarh.

Election Commission of India’s (ECI) recommendation to disqualify 20 Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs for holding ‘office of profit’ has caused fresh trouble for Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government as their disqualification may lead to by-polls in Delhi for 20 seats.

Currently, AAP has 66 seats in Delhi Assembly and following the disqualification, the party will be reduced to 46 seats.

Also read: Disqualification of MLAs: BJP welcomes move, AAP fumes

The ECI on Friday recommended their disqualification citing their appointed as parliamentary secretaries, which was “unconstitutional”.

Initially, the profit for office case was against 21 MLAs before Rajouri Garden MLA Jarnail Singh resigned from his post to contest elections against former Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal in 2017 state election.

On September 8, 2016, the high court had set aside the appointment of the 21 AAP MLAs as parliamentary secretaries. The court had observed that the order to appoint them as parliamentary secretaries was given without the concurrence of the then Delhi Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung.

Here is the complete list of AAP MLAs: 

• Praveen Kumar: Jangpura MLA
• Sharad Kumar Chauhan: Narela MLA
• Madan Lal Khufiya: Kasturba Nagar MLA
• Shiv Charan Goyal: Moti Nagar MLA
• Sarita Singh: Rohtas Nagar MLA
• Anil Kumar Bajpai: Gandhi Nagar MLA
• Som Dutt: Sadar Bazar MLA
• Avtar Singh: Kalkaji MLA
• Nitin Tyagi: Laxmi Nagar MLA
• Jarnail Singh: Tilak Nagar MLA
• Adarsh Shastri: Dwarka MLA
• Alka Lamba: Chandni Chowk MLA
• Sanjeev Jha: Burari MLA
• Kailash Gehlot: Najafgarh MLA
• Vijendra Garg: Rajinder Nagar MLA
• Naresh Yadav: Mehrauli MLA
• Rajesh Gupta: Wazirpur MLA
• Rajesh Rishi: Janakpuri MLA
• Sukhvir Singh Dala: Mundka MLA
• Manoj Kumar: Kondli MLA

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was on a six-day visit to India, did something which was far beyond everyone’s imagination when he brought Vivek Oberoi and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan together for a group selfie.

On January 18 at Shalom Bollywood, an event which aimed at promoting Israel as a hotspot shooting location, Netanyahu met the who’s who of the tinsel town, including the likes of Amitabh Bachchan and Karan Johar. But it was Vivek and Aishwarya who grabbed eyeballs at the event when the two actors came together for a group selfie with Netanyahu.

The PM of Israel created an Oscar selfie moment with the celebs of B-town something which is familiar to what Ellen DeGeneres did back in 2016 with Hollywood’s top stars. But the selfie didn’t raise eyebrows just for the imitation of the Hollywood photo as Netanyahu’s selfie had exes Vivek and Aishwarya in it. This is the first time that the two actors can be seen together in one frame after more than 14 years.

Will my Bollywood selfie beat @TheEllenShow Hollywood selfie at the Oscars? @SrBachchan @juniorbachchan @rajcheerfull @imbhandarkar @vivek_oberoi @ pic.x.com/v1r0GIhKLy

— Benjamin Netanyahu (@netanyahu) January 18, 2018

Those of you who are wondering why this photo is making the rounds is because Vivek and Aishwarya dated each other for a brief period of time post the actress’ breakup with Salman Khan in 2003.

But their love story shortly ended after Vivek called for a press conference to address about how Salman called him 41 times and threatened to kill him. After getting to know about what her alleged lover did, Aishwarya called it off thus ending the short-lived relationship between the two.

Ever since that the two have never shared screen space and has avoided each other on numerous occasions.

So coming back to the ‘groupfie’ it was indeed something that nobody would have thought that it would ever take place.

Although in a single frame, the two actors can be seen standing at quite a distance from each other as Aishwarya snapped alongside her hubby (Abhishek Bachchan) while Vivek could be seen alongside Karan Johar.

Seems like the two exes haven’t buried the hatchet yet!

In what is expected to boost New Delhi’s quest to join the Nuclear Suppliers’ Group (NSG), India on Friday became the 43rd member of the Australia Group (AG), the cooperative and voluntary group of countries working to counter the spread of materials, equipment and technologies that could contribute to the development or acquisition of chemical and biological weapons by states or terrorist groups.

Thus, India is now a member of three of the four global non-proliferation regimes. It attained the membership of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) in June last year and the Wassenaar Group last month. China, however, continues to block India’s entry into the NSG. China insists that both India and Pakistan should join the grouping together, or not at all.

According to External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar, India’s entry into AG would be “mutually beneficial and contribute further to international security and non-proliferation objectives.’’ He was confident that the membership of AG would strengthen India’s case for inclusion in the NSG in view of the country’s non-proliferation credentials.

There was very strong support expressed for India’s membership at the June 2017 AG meeting after which consensus was reached internally for granting India the membership of the group.

In warmly welcoming India to the group, other AG members recognised New Delhi’s commitment to bring India’s export control system into alignment with AG and the country’s determination to contribute to the global effort to prevent the proliferation of chemical and biological weapons in the security of the international community.

Two days after the Vigilance Department submitted a report in the 2014 Bar Scam case to the Kerala High Court, the court on Friday ordered that there will be no further media trials in the case.

The Vigilance has started a probe into a leak involving its report exonerating former Kerala Finance Minister K.M.Mani, that was submitted to the court on Wednesday.

The case took a sudden twist on Wednesday when the Vigilance report leaked to the media said “there was no substantial evidence against Mani” about him accepting a Rs one crore bribe in 2014.

In October 2014, bar hotel owner Biju Ramesh had alleged that Mani was paid the bribe for his promise to reopen all bars closed in the state following a new excise policy.

The Vigilance report on Mani found its way into the media. Soon a media trial was started on the “manner in which cases are being handled”.

It was following this that the high court ordered that from now on there should be no more media trial. It was angry on how the contents of the such a report found its way into the hands of the media.

The court on Wednesday asked the Vigilance Department to submit its final report in another 45 days time and until then all sorts of discussions in the media was banned.

The Bar Scam case to a large extent discredited the previous Oommen Chandy government and Mani in particular.

Following a court remark in November 2015, Mani had to quit as Minister.

This was used as one of the biggest election campaign issue by the Left Democratic Front (LDF) during the May 2016 assembly polls, romping the LDF home and trouncing the Chandy-led Congress.

Mani, however, is tight-lipped and has refused to react. He said he “has nothing to say as the court is looking into it”.

Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Friday termed as “national shame” the fake degrees scandal involving a Pakistani company and ordered a probe by the country’s top investigating agency in the so-called “diploma mill” that sold thousands of sham qualifications to British nationals.

Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar ordered the head of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to submit a detailed report in the court within 10 days about the scandal involving Axact company.

“It is an issue of national shame for us if the allegations are correct,” the judge observed.

According to a report on Tuesday by the BBC, Axact sold more than 3,000 qualifications in Britain between 2013 and 2014, including PhDs and doctorates, the BBC reported.

The company reportedly invented hundreds of universities online and used fake news stories in an attempt to dupe employers who might check the references on applicants’ CVs, the report said.

Axact, which claims to be the “world’s largest IT company” and has invented names such as Brooklyn Park University and Nixon University, is run by agents from a call centre in Karachi, it said.

Axact fake degree scam first surfaced in 2015 when a New York Times report titled “Fake Diplomas, Real Cash: Pakistani Company Axact Reaps Millions” was published.

Pakistan government launched a case against the company and also arrested its CEO Shoaib Sheikh and several other employees.

The case against Axact is still pending with the Sindh High Court, which granted bail to Sheikh and 13 other co- accused in August 2016. After coming out of custody, Sheikh launched Bol TV channels network.

However, Umair Hamid, a vice president of Axact, was last year sentenced to 21 months in prison in the US for his role in selling degrees to US nationals.

The company denies all wrongdoing.

A plea filed by a US researcher challenging the acquittal of Peepli Live co-director Mahmood Farooqui in an alleged rape case was rejected by the Supreme Court on 19 January.

Dismissing the petition, the Supreme Court said that it would not interfere with the Delhi High Court’s verdict which is a “well-written judgement”.

“We are not satisfied. We will not interfere with the high court verdict. It is a well-written judgement,” the bench comprising Justices S A Bobde and L Nageswara Rao said.

Also read: SC dismisses plea against Farooqui’s acquittal in rape case

According to reports, the bench said, “It is not a case where strangers met. It is a relationship and they were known to each other,” adding that “it’s a hard case but well decided by the high court”.

The plea was filed by the 30-year-old woman who accused Farooqui of raping her at his Sukhdev Vihar house in South Delhi on 28 March 2015.

Farooqui was arrested following an FIR filed by the police filed on 19 June 2015. In August 2016, the director was handed a seven-year jail term and fine of Rs 50,000 by a trial court.

In September 2017, the high court acquitted Farooqui giving him the ‘benefit of doubt’.

“It would be really difficult to decipher whether little or no resistance and a feeble ‘no’ was actually a denial of consent,” the high court order said.

A tripartite MoU was on Friday signed for implementation of a soft skill training programme in some Odisha Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) under which 800 students will be trained over two years.

The agreement was inked by the Odisha Skill Development Authority (OSDA), Tata STRIVE of Tata Community Initiatives Trust and entrepreneur Susmita Bagchi to improve life skills of trainees.

Through the programme, the youth development module of Tata STRIVE — which primarily covers all aspects of employability skill subject — will be implemented in 10 ITIs.

The funds required to the tune of Rs 8 crore for implementation of the module will be leveraged on the basis of 50 per cent by Tata STRIVE and 50 per cent by Bagchi.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik expressed satisfaction over the efforts being put in by OSDA, saying: “The initiative will help in making ITI students employable and set a precedence for the entire country to follow.”

He also thanked Bagchi and the Tata Group for spearheading the programme.

The US has said that Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed, the mastermind of the Mumbai terror attack, should be prosecuted to the “fullest extent of the law” as Washington regards him as a terrorist.

Washington has sent a message to Islamabad to act against Saeed, said US State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert on Thursday.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi had earlier decided not to prosecute Saeed, referring to him as “Sahib” in an interview to Geo News earlier this week. He said there was no case against him in Pakistan.

Nauert, reacting to Abbasi’s remarks, said: “We regard him as a terrorist, a part of a foreign terrorist organisation. He was the mastermind, we believe, of the 2008 Mumbai attack which killed many people, including Americans as well.

“We have made our points and our concerns to the Pakistani government very clear. We believe that this individual should be prosecuted.

“The Pakistani government released him from house arrest not that long ago. We believe he should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. He is listed by the UN Security Council 1267, the Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee for targeted sanctions due to his affiliation with Lashkar-e Taiba,” she said.

The White House has already clarified that there would be repercussions for US-Pakistan relations unless Islamabad takes action to detain and charge Saeed.

Pakistani authorities released Saeed from house arrest in November due to lack of evidence, much to the US administration’s frustration.

In May 2008, the US Department of the Treasury designated Saeed as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist under Executive Order 13224.

He was also individually designated by the UN under UNSC R1267 in December 2008 following the November 2008 Mumbai attack in which 166 Indians and foreigners were killed.

Amid increasing pressure from the US, however, Pakistan recently started a decisive move against proscribed organisations, including Saeed’s JuD and its subsidiary Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation (FIF).

Fundraising and other activities by proscribed organisations and their subsidiaries had been banned in Islamabad.

After its entry into the Wassenaar Arrangement and the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), India on Friday notched up another success as it became a member of the Australia Group, the third of four key global export control regimes that will help pave the way for entry into the Nuclear Suppliers’ Group.

India became the 43rd member of the Australia Group, an informal forum of countries which seeks to ensure that exports do not contribute to the development of chemical or biological weapons.

“I am happy to announce that India has joined the Australia Group on January 19, 2018, following the completion of internal procedures for joining this group,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said in his weekly media briefing here.

“The Australia Group decided to admit India as the Group’s 43rd participant through a consensus decision,” he said.

“India would like to thank each of the Australia Group participants for their support for India’s membership.”

Kumar also expressed New Delhi’s appreciation for Ambassador Jane Hardy of Australia, former chair of the Australia Group, for her role in facilitating India’s accession to the Group.

“India’s entry into Group would be mutually beneficial and further contribute to international security and non-proliferation objectives,” he said.

In a separate statement, the Australia Group said “there was very strong support expressed for India’s membership at the June 26-30, 2017, Australia Group Plenary, after which consensus was reached intersessionally.” and then India reaffirmed its intention to join the Group.

“In warmly welcoming India to the Group, the other Australia Group members recognised the government of India’s commitment to bring India’s export control system into alignment with the Australia Group and India’s determination to contribute to the global effort to prevent the proliferation of CBW in the security interests of all members of the international community,” it stated.

“With its admission into the Australia Group, India has demonstrated the will to implement rigorous controls of high standards in international trade, and its capacity to adapt its national regulatory system to meet the necessities of its expanding economy.”

The statement added that India was “also aware of the need to constantly adapt its export controls in the face of rapidly evolving scientific and technological challenges, and in this regard, affirmed its readiness to act in close cooperation with all members towards the furtherance of Australia Group objectives”.

The other Australia Group members are Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, European Union, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Republic of Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom and United States.

This is the third of the four export control regimes that India has joined since 2017.

Last year, India became the 35th member of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), an informal and voluntary partnership of countries to prevent the proliferation of missile and unmanned aerial vehicle technology capable of carrying above 500 kg payload for more than 300 km, and the 42nd member of the Wassenaar Arrangement, which seeks to contribute to regional and international security and stability by promoting transparency and greater responsibility in transfers of conventional arms and dual-use goods and technologies.

China has been opposing India’s bid to become member of the NSG, on the ground that for a country to join the 48-nation bloc, it has to be a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

Den of Thieves director Christian Gudegast put the cast including Gerard Butler, Pablo Schreiber and 50 Cent (given name Curtis Jackson), through a two-week training camp as a prep for the movie.

The movie, being brought to India by PVR Pictures, revolves around two rival groups — The Outlaws (Schreiber’s team) and The Regulators (Butler’s team).

To ensure authenticity, the actors trained in sync with their respective characters and teams. From using actual weapons to being trained by actual members of the forces, the cast did it all.

The Outlaws trained with Paul Maurice, who is currently on active duty with the US Armed Forces and who trains other service members in advanced tactical maneuvers and weaponry, read a statement.

“He gave the Outlaws tremendous confidence,” Gudegast said.

“They trained hard out on the firing range. They drilled in repetition until their movements with the firearms were completely fluid: They could load, unload, change 16 mags – the way they manipulated the firearms was just awesome, and that was Paul’s doing.”

The Regulators worked with Jay Dobyns, a retired undercover detective from the Los Angeles Police Department gang division. The group practiced techniques and tactics used by plain-clothes detectives, drilling down with great specificity.

The two groups used real weapons out in the field to get a feel for the heft and weight of the guns and then practiced with paintball guns to get used to the mechanics of holding and shooting them while walking, running and jumping.

Schreiber said: “The Regulators would come to the training ground around the time we were leaving or vice versa. We kept having these moments where we’d be passing each other and there were animosity and a lot of cold stares – as well as jokes thrown from a long distance. It bred this healthy competition, which was good for Gerry and me to have because it bumped things up.”

A crime saga set in Los Angeles by Christian Gudegast, Den of Thieves follows the intersecting and connected lives of an elite unit of the LA County Sheriff’s department and the state’s most successful bank robbery crew. The movie will release in India on February 2.

B-town celebrities, including Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Karan Johar, Kajol and many others graced the event of Mickey Contractor who celebrated 12 years of his association with a renowned makeup brand.

Madhuri, kajol, sonali, Manish Malhotra and doc nene at Mac event. #mickeycontractor pic.x.com/Iab9sl7lLS

— MadhuriDixitQuotes *ᴮᵁᶜᴷᴱᵀᴸᴵˢᵀ* (@MadhuriQuote) January 19, 2018

Contractor is one of the top makeup artists in the film industry. He has been associated with MAC ever since the brand set its foot in India. The combination of the most-renowned makeup brand in the world is MAC.

Mickey has been behind some of the best looks we have seen in movies, events, and red carpets. The event was filled with the glamour of the celebrities as they dressed up in their finest.

@MadhuriDixit @DoctorNene with @karanjohar and #Rakhisawant at #MickeyContractorBash pic.x.com/dYjtlFFtNh

— Madhuri Dixit ArabFC (@MDsArabWorld) January 19, 2018

Mickey has been behind the many looks of actors, including Urmila Matondkar’s look in Rangeela, Madhuri Dixit, and Karisma Kapoor in Dil To Pagal Hai, Kareena Kapoor in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Preity Zinta in Kal Ho Naa Ho to name a few. Mickey’s work will also be seen in the upcoming film Veere Di Wedding that stars Sonam Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor Khan.

“Sweetest Couple Of Bollywood”
#AishwaryaRaiBachchan Poses With Hubby #AbhishekBachchan In #Black At #MickeyContractorBash #ShalomBollywood #Mumbai
View More https://t.co/3Y7QEcUqyu pic.x.com/4kSfdjxvPJ

— Bollywood Uncut (@BollywoodUncut) January 19, 2018

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan arrived with husband Abhishek Bachchan. Abhishek chose a well-cut suit, while Aishwarya was dressed in a beautiful black saree. Karan Johar looked dapper in a wine-colored coat. Gorgeous Dia Mirza chose to go with simple attire and still managed to look pretty. Meanwhile, Rishi Kapoor and wife Neetu Singh appeared great together. Madhuri Dixit-Nene, with all smiles, looked stunning in a black dress.

Pakistan and Iran have decided to restore a fortnightly passenger train service between the two countries by September due to improvement in the security situation.

A Joint Expert Committee meeting was held here on Thursday, Xinhua news agency reported. The train service will run between Pakistan’s southwestern city of Quetta and the Iranian cities of Mashhad and Qom.

The service will largely cater to the needs of pilgrims during Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar.

The two sides also decided to run 15 regular freight trains between Quetta and Iran’s Zahedan due to the demands of the business community.

The Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul train also came up for discussion at the meeting.

A temple priest has been shot dead in Bihar’s Rohtas district, police said on Friday.

Prawin Das, attached to the Ravidas temple in Sakhra village, was murdered on Thursday night.

“Some locals said that an old dispute related to the temple land may be a factor behind the killing,” a police officer said.

Rahul Gandhi would lead from the front for the Congress in poll-bound Karnataka, launching the campaign with a three-day tour from February 10, a key state party leader said on Friday

Working President of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee, Dinesh Gundu Rao, also indicated that party MLAs facing anti-incumbency in their constituencies, may not get tickets in polls, due in May.

He added that joining hands with the JD(S) in case Congress fails to get majority is not being looked at as an option as his party is confident of coming to power on its own, and also that the H D Deve Gowda-led outfit is “not dependable”.

Speaking to PTI here, Gundu Rao said Gandhi is going to be a “very key” campaigner for the Congress in the state where, he noted, it also has “very powerful” state leaders like Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, M Mallikarjuna Kharge, G Parameshwara and D K Shivakumar.

“At the same time, I think Rahulji is getting resonance amongst people, and he is leading the campaign for us,” Gundu Rao, who was here to attend an event, said.

The Congress president is starting his campaign with a three-day tour of the state from February 10. He might visit again later next month and also in March.

“In the run-up to the elections, he will be spending lot more time, and he is definitely going to lead from the front for us”, he said.

“We have started our campaign from KPCC and the chief minister has also toured the state”, he said.

“Gandhi would be intensively campaigning and you can say more or less launch of the campaign for the Congress (with his February tour),” the Congress leader added.

He claimed there is no anti-incumbency on the government because out of 165 promises made in the election manifesto, it has implemented 155-156. In fact, Gundu Rao said the Congress is seeing pro-incumbency wave creeping in, adding, it would win more number of seats than the last time.

Gundu Rao, however, said that some Congress MLAs might have “built-up” anti-incumbency in their constituencies.

“That’s what we need to look out for. If they have not done well, we have to change then, that’s going to be the key thing,” he said.

Congress MLAs facing anti-incumbency will be “definitely changed”, as the party’s aim is to field “best available candidates”, he said.

On whether the Congress would look for an understanding with JD(S) in case it falls short on numbers in post-poll scenario, he said, “There is no question of us wanting an alliance because we are clearly in the race to get absolute majority.”

“But post-poll…what happens…who knows? I can’t predict right now. JD(S) is not dependable. They have been with BJP, they have formed government with us, they are not people who can be trusted because they don’t have ideology, don’t have fixed agenda, they can play anything; they are not dependable at all. So, I will not look at that option,” he added.