mumbai

Updated: Aug 31, 2018 18:46 IST

Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday asked party leaders in Maharashtra to put up a united show in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls to ensure victory and told them to apply ‘tan-man-dhan’ (body-mind-resources) “as they were in power for 15 years”.

The Congress was in power in Maharashtra along with the NCP for 15 years in a row till 2014, before a BJP-led government took over the reins of the state.

Kharge, the Congress’ general secretary in-charge for Maharashtra, made the remarks at the launch of the party’s ‘Jan Sangharsh Yatra’ in Kolhapur in the presence of former chief ministers Ashok Chavan and Prithviraj Chavan and other leaders.

Kharge said the ruling BJP would not be able to hold its ground once the Congress leaders toiled unitedly for victory.

“We stood on the stage (during the campaign launch programme) holding and raising each other’s hands. But at the same time, there is a need of tan-man-dhan (for the Congress to win the polls),” Kharge told a gathering of party workers here.

“Tan-man-dhan has to be there because you also ruled for 15-20 years. You were in power. All should co-operate,” he added.

Hit by the Narendra Modi wave in the 2014 general elections, the Congress could win only two out of the 48 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra, registering its worst ever performance.

The first phase of the mass outreach programme of the Congress would culminate in Pune on September 8.