The Indian National Congress has announced a list of 40 prominent leaders who will campaign across Jammu and Kashmir for the upcoming state assembly elections. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi will lead the charge alongside former party chief Rahul Gandhi and general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
Several other senior Congress members feature on the roster of star campaigners like Jairam Ramesh, Ambika Soni, Ajay Maken and Salman Khurshid. Former chief ministers Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu of Himachal Pradesh and Charanjit Singh Chhanni of Punjab will also hit the campaign trail. Ex-Rajasthan deputy CM Sachin Pilot is among those tapped to connect with voters.
Voting in the 90-seat Jammu and Kashmir assembly will be conducted in three phases on September 18, 25 and October 1. The results will be declared on October 8, marking the first polls since the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019.
The Congress aims to capitalise on its pre-poll alliance with the National Conference. Under the joint banner, the star campaigners will traverse the union territory over the coming weeks to put forth their vision and garner support.
With big names fanning out across Jammu and Kashmir, the Congress hopes to regain lost ground and play a pivotal role in the formation of the next state government. Only the unfolding election season will reveal if their high-powered campaign translates to success at the ballot box.
Here is the complete list of Congress' star campaigners for the first phase of Jammu and Kashmir polls:
1. Mallikarajun Kharge
2. Rajani Patil
3. Sonia Gandhi
4. Rajiv Shukla
5. Rahul Gandhi
6. Manish Tewari
7. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra
8. Imran Pratapgarhi
9. K.C. Venugopal
10. Kishori Lal Sharma
11. Ajay Maken
12. Ranjit Ranjan
13. Ambika Soni
14. Raman Bhalla
15. Bharatsinh Solanki
16. Tarachand
17. Tariq Hameed Karra
18. Chaudhary Lal Singh
19. Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu
20. Peerzada Mohd. Sayeed
21. Jairam Ramesh
22. Imran Masood
23. Ghulam Ahmad Mir
24. Pawan Khera
25. Sachin Pilot
26. Supriya Shrinate
27. Mukesh Agnihotri
28. Kanhaiya Kumar
29. Charanjit Singh Channi
30. Manoj Yadav
31. Salman Khurshid
32. Shahnawaz Chaudhary
33. Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa
34. Rajesh Lilothia
35. Amrinder Singh Raja Warring
36. Alka Lamba
37. Syed Nasir Hussain
38. Srinivas B.V.
39. Vikar Rasool Wani
40. Neeraj Kundan
