Congress deploys band for Rahul rally

Band members earlier volunteered for AAP

They earlier strummed guitar strings for the Aam Aadmi Party. Now, the group of youngsters of musical band ‘Saaz’ are singing paeans about the Congress party.

Donning black track suits with Congress insignia, the group of 15 belted out songs composed for the Grand Old Party at Rahul Gandhi’s first rally for the Delhi assembly elections in East Delhi.

This is perhaps for the first time the Congress has utilised the services of a live band to keep the audience engaged at political rallies addressed by senior leaders.

“In 2013, several members of the group worked as volunteers for the AAP, taking Arvind Kejriwal’s message to the voters the musical way,” Vijay Sharma, the band’s manager told Deccan Herald.

The band has covered 35 out of Delhi’s 70 Assembly constituencies for the Congress party, singing campaign songs at crowded places such as Metro Rail stations, markets, malls and slum clusters.

“The Congress is not paying a single penny to them. They have volunteered to perform for the Congress,” Congress leader Ragini Nayak said.

The band members cover four to five Assembly constituencies every day and take the message of the Congress to the voters through songs. “Most of the songs have been penned by members of the band. We had outsourced one song to a school teacher,” Sharma said.

While the group was associated with the AAP, the members had also performed at several places in Amethi where Kumar Vishwas had contested against Rahul Gandhi.

The group comprising vocalists, guitarist, drummers has rehearsed ten songs recounting the contribution made by the Congress in the development of the national capital.

As the band performs its musical act, the specially designed campaign vehicles mounted with LED screens play a short depicting the history of the Congress, its contribution to the freedom struggle and the role of former prime ministers Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi. Congress President Sonia Gandhi, vice president Rahul Gandhi also figure in the video.
DH News Service