Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, KC Venugopal among 27 star Congress campaigners for LS polls

On Saturday, the Indian National Congress (INC) unveiled a roster of 27 star campaigners for Jammu and Kashmir, featuring notable figures such as party president Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. These leaders will spearhead the party’s campaigning efforts for the Lok Sabha elections, slated to occur in five phases in the region.

The list of star campaigners for the parliamentary elections in Jammu and Kashmir was formally submitted by INC general secretary KC Venugopal to the Secretary of the Election Commission of India. The lineup includes prominent figures like Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Ambika Soni, KC Venugopal, Sachin Pilot, Bharatsingh Solanki, Vikar Rasool Wani, GA Mir, Tariq Hameed Karra, Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, Revanth Reddy, and Harish Rawat.

Additionally, the list comprises Pramod Tewari, Pawan Khera, Ranjeet Ranjan, TS Singh Deo, Imran Pratapgarhi, Raj Babbar, Pirzada Mohd Sayeed, Manoj Yadav, Tara Chand, Raman Bhalla, Chowdhary Lal Singh, GN Monga, Shameema Raina, and Akash Bharat.

These leaders of the Indian National Congress will actively engage in campaigning activities as per Section 77(1) of the Representation of People Act 1951, particularly focusing on the first and second phases of the general elections to the Lok Sabha from Jammu and Kashmir in 2024.

Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar earlier indicated that assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir will follow shortly after the Lok Sabha polls. This announcement was made alongside the declaration of dates for the general election, four state polls, and 26 Assembly by-polls.

The Lok Sabha polls in the Union Territory are scheduled to take place in five phases on April 19 (Udhampur), April 26 (Jammu), May 7 (Anantnag-Rajouri), May 13 (Srinagar), and May 20 (Baramulla), with the counting of votes set for June 4.