Ahead of the state Assembly polls, the Karnataka government on Saturday announced its first list of 124 candidates in the fray.
The national party has fielded former Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah from the Varuna assembly seat, and Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chief Shivakumar from Kanakapura.
Priyank Kharge will be contesting from Chitapur, which is an SC (scheduled cast) seat.
The party has fielded former deputy chief minister G Parameshwara from the Koratagere (SC) constituency. Former ministers KH Muniappa and Priyank Kharge will contest from Devanahalli and Chitapur (SC), respectively. Priyank is the son of Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge.
The party's central election committee cleared the first list of candidates after a meeting in Delhi on March 17. The committee is chaired by Congress chief Kharge. Rahul Gandhi was also present at the meeting.
The Congress is the first party to release its candidates' list for the elections in Karnataka. The Election Commission is yet to announce the schedule for assembly polls in the southern state.
Assembly polls in Karnataka are slated before May when the tenure of the current assembly ends. The Congress is seeking to wrest power from the BJP in the southern state.
The Congress has set a target of winning at least 150 seats in the 224-member Assembly, to come to power in Karnataka, with a clear majority.
Meanwhile, Modi is scheduled to make the seventh visit to the state, this year, on Saturday during which he will take part in various official events and address a mega public meet organised by the BJP.
(with PTI inputs)
