Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress president Rahul Gandhi are holding rallies in Karnataka today ahead of the May 12 assembly election. This is the PM's second round of campaigning with a rally in Kalaburagi. He will also be addressing rallies in Bellary and Bengaluru. A phalanx of senior BJP leaders will also be campaigning in the state. Rahul Gandhi will hold rallies in Aurad, Bhalki and Humnabad in Bidar district today. Excerpts from the PM's speech.

-- This election will decide the future of Karnataka. It is about security of women, the development of farmers. Do not assume this is only about electing MLAs, it is much more than that.


-- Congress doesn't respect the sacrifices of our soldiers. When our soldiers carried out surgical strikes, the Congress party questioned them. They kept on asking proof of the strikes from me. After surgical strikes, a Congress senior leaders called our current Army Chief a 'Gunda'.  Congress would rather prefer our soldiers go with cameras and not guns! But then, this is expected considering how their own senior leader behaved on stage when 'Vande Mataram' was being sung


-- Karnataka is synonymous with valour, but how did the Congress governments treat Field Marshall Cariappa and General Thimayya? History is proof of that. In 1948 after defeating Pakistan, General Thimayya was insulted by PM Nehru and Defence Minister Krishna Menon. 


-- During the last elections, Congress promised they will make Mallikarjuna Kharge the Chief Minister. They misled the Dalit community. This is typically how Congress plays politics.


-- Would like to ask the Congress people who carried out a candle march in Delhi? Where were your candles when a Dalit girl was tortured in Bidar?