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Congress goes all out for Rahul's comeback

Leaders work to make party vice-president's rally a success
Last Updated 17 April 2015, 20:25 IST

A re-energised Congress is pulling out all stops to make Sunday’s farmers’ rally—a comeback event of sorts for Rahul Gandhi after his sabbatical from politics—a “great success”.

The Rajasthan unit of the party has hired a 17-coach train, calling it “Kisan Express”, which will leave Jaipur on Saturday picking up farmers from six designated stops en route Delhi.

The main Opposition party is planning to mobilise at least one lakh farmers for the rally.
Rahul will make his first public appearance on Saturday as he meets farmers’ representatives from Haryana, Rajasthan, western Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Delhi in his bid to understand the problems they faced due to unseasonal rain and the government’s push to ease the land acquisition law.

The meetings were planned for Friday, but Rahul chose to remain closeted with his mother, Congress president Sonia Gandhi, presumably discussing organisational matters and finalising speeches for Sunday’s rally. The event has triggered rivalry among state units of the party, particularly in Haryana and Punjab.

Haryana former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda has directed his supporters to sport pink turbans at the rally. Punjab former chief minister Amarinder Singh, who has a running battle with state unit chief Partap Singh Bajwa, has asked his supporters to turn up at the rally in saffron turbans.

The Congress sought to downplay this rivalry as “healthy competition” to ensure the success of the rally at the Ramlila Maidan in the national capital.

Congress leaders are keen to avoid a repeat of December 2013, when people had started walking out of a rally in the Delhi election campaign much before Rahul was to speak.

Keeping in mind the heat factor, the Congress has put up as many as 25 juice stalls at the venue to ensure the farmers do not suffer from dehydration.

Fourteen huge LED screens have also been set up at the venue to beam cultural programmes to keep the audience engaged before the leaders take the stage.

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(Published 17 April 2015, 20:24 IST)

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