The Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi is on two day tour to Karnataka to attend the birthday celebrations of the Tumkur Mutt Swami who turned 105, days ago. Her visit is seen as an attempt by the Congress to galvanise party workers in the state for the polls ahead in 2013. The Siddaganga Mutt Swami is the most influential guru among the Lingayat community, which forms about 17 per cent of Karnataka's population. The Lingayats had distanced themselves from Congress since 2004 as the BJP began generous donations to Lingayat mutts.
