Campaign intensifies as deadline nears

MYSORE: As the deadline for the campaign nears for the second phase in Karnataka, leaders are trooping into the Old Mysore region to canvass for their party candidates in Mysore, Chamarajnagar and Mandya parliamentary constituencies.
While the Congress was led by AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi, it was JD(S) supremo H D Deve Gowda in the Vokkaliga heartland Mandya.BJP chief D V Sadanandagowda led the party's campaign in Mysore segment.
Congress brigade consisted of Congress general secretary in-charge of Karnataka Gulam Nabi Azad, KPCC chief R V Deshpande and working chief D K Shivakumar and former deputy CM Siddaramaiah. Azad campaigned in the city's Narasimharaja constituency for the party nominee H Vishwanath and later for Chamarajnagar candidate R Dhruvanarayan in Hanur and Chamarajnagar assembly segments. Later, he joined Rahul Gandhi at Nanjangud where Deshpande and Siddaramaiah were present.
Senior Congress leaders S M Krishna and Mallikarjuna Kharge and KPCC campaign committee chief G Parameshwara, former deputy CM M P Prakash and former Union minister C M Ibrahim are arriving here in next couple of days.
The JD(S) campaign was led by Gowda and former CM H D Kumaraswamy, who traveled through Mandya and Mysore segments. Gowda addressed a public rally at Mandya while Kumaraswamy held a roadshow in Chamundeshwari constituency. Kumaraswamy is focusing on Mysore and is camping in the segment for three days later this week.