Congress not averse talking to Gowda: Jacob

Bangalore, July 4: The Congress is not averse to talking to JanataDal(S) President H D Deve Gowda to seek support for UPA Presidentialcandidate Pratibha Patil, newly appointed Congress Working Committee(CWC) member and in-charge of party affairs in Karnataka M M Jacob saidtoday.

Talking to newspersons on his arrival in the city to launch thecampaign for the Presidential elections in the state, he said ''I amnot averse to talking to anybody. Mr Gowda is a senior leader and werespect him. We are sure that he will take a proper decision.'' Askedwhether the Congress would again explore the possibility of forming acoalition government in Karnataka, he said the question did not ariseat the moment.

Mr Jacob said communalism had begun to raise its ugly head in Karnataka and it was the duty of the Congress to fight it.

''Congressmen will fight communalism. The ideals of PanditJawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and now Sonia Gandhi aremost suitable for a country like India. Congress is the only partywhich has supported these values since independence,'' he said.

Mr Jacob is on a five-day visit to the state to gear up the partyand seek support from other like-minded parties for Ms Patil, who wasexpected to arrive in the city on Friday.

''Congress is recognising the power of women. The party is makinga novel attempt to make a woman the President of the country. It isimportant that we empower women,'' he added.

It might be recalled that the JD(S) was yet to take a finaldecision on supporting either Ms Patil or NDA backed candidate BhaironSingh Shekhawat in the presidential election, to be held on July 19.

Mr Gowda had recently said the party would take a suitable decision at the right time.

UNI