Mangaluru: Dakshina Kannada unit of Congress will be holding an all members convention in preparation for the upcoming Zilla and Taluk Panchayat polls at Cordell Hall in Kulshekar Church on Saturday January 23 at 11 am, district Congress ad-hoc President Ibrahim Kodijal informed on Wednesday.

Addressing the media, Kodijal said that the Congress will certainly win the polls as the people now have given up on Narendra Modi and the BJP. He said that recent MLC polls and the by-polls in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Haryana also have proven that the public wants the Congress in power as the party has always strived to live up to people’s expectations.

He said that intolerance and price of essential commodities are on the rise and people badly need respite from them. BJP has been violating the constitutional fundaments and dividing people. On the other hand, Congress always moots harmony and public has realized it, he added.

Home Minister Dr G Parameshwar, AICC General Secretary Oscar Feranandes, Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister HK Patil will be present along with DK District In-Charge Minister Ramanath Rai, Health Minister UT Khader and Urban Development Minister Vinay Kumar Sorake among others.

For applications, the candidates for Zilla Panchayat are supposed to pay Rs 10,000 while charges for women and individuals from SC/ST are fixed at Rs 5,000. For Taluk Panchayat applications, candidates are supposed to pay Rs 5,000 while women and individuals need to pay Rs 2,500.