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Rajasthan: Rahul Gandhi to sound poll bugle from Mangarh Dham on Wednesday
This will be Rahul Gandhi’s first public meeting after he was reinstated as the Lok Sabha MP after the Supreme Court suspended his criminal defamation conviction in the Modi surname case
Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is set to sound poll bugle from Mangarh Dham in Banswara district in Rajasthan on August 9, World Tribal Day. This will be his first public meeting after returning to Lok Sabha.
Gandhi re-entered the Lok Sabha on Monday, 137 days after his disqualification on March 24, and a day ahead of the debate of the no-confidence motion that began on Tuesday.
The Dham is at Dungarpur-Banswara border on the confluence of three rivers Som, Mahi and Jhakad – a pilgrimage centre for the tribals.
The tribal vote bank has become the prime focus for both the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the region thrice - October 2022 in Abu Road, November 2022 in Mangarh Dham and Abu Road in May, 2023.
In November 2022, Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot expressed his disappointment after PM Modi did not declare Mangarh Dham a national monument.
A senior leader familiar with the development said the state has already allocated a sum of ₹10 crore for the development of the Dham.
Deputy leader of Opposition, Rajendra Rathore said Gandhi tries to copy PM Modi as the PM visited the place last year. the PM already asked the CM of three states to jointly work to develop the Dham. “It will be a failed attempt of Gandhi to lure the tribals,” he said.
In Rajasthan, eight districts--Banswara, Dungarpur, Chittorgarh, Udaipur, Rajsamand, Sirohi, Pratapgarh and Pali-- fall under the scheduled area which has a total of 37 assembly constituencies. 21 of the 37 seats are held by the BJP while the Congress holds 11 seats, independents 3 and the Bhartiya Tribal Party (BTP) has two seats.
Rajasthan has a total of 200 assembly seats and 71 are held by the BJP.
The BTP’s influence in the tribal belt of Rajasthan is a cause of concern for both the BJP and the Congress and therefore, both the principal parties are trying to keep the tribal vote bank with them.
Elections to the Rajasthan legislative assembly are scheduled for later this year, along with Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Mizoram
