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Cong set to strengthen base in UP
UTTAR PRADESH Congress Committee president Salman Khurshid said serious efforts had been initiated to strengthen the party base in Uttar Pradesh. The State Congress would lay emphasis on ?contact? and ?struggle? to infuse fresh life into the organisation, he said. In a chat with mediapersons here on Tuesday, Khurshid said eight ?Jan Vishwas? yatras would be taken out on February 14 and each yatra would cover two divisions.
UTTAR PRADESH Congress Committee president Salman Khurshid said serious efforts had been initiated to strengthen the party base in Uttar Pradesh. The State Congress would lay emphasis on ‘contact’ and ‘struggle’ to infuse fresh life into the organisation, he said.
In a chat with mediapersons here on Tuesday, Khurshid said eight ‘Jan Vishwas’ yatras would be taken out on February 14 and each yatra would cover two divisions.
The in-charge of party affairs in UP and he would be present here on February 14 to flag off the yatra, which would cover every development block and Assembly constituency of Allahabad and Mirzapur divisions, Khurshid said.
Accompanied by senior party leader Rajendra Tripathi and District Congress Committee president Ashok Bajpai, Khurshid said Congress national president Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi had already indicated at the Hyderabad convention that the party would be rejuvenated in Bihar and UP. Appropriate steps were being taken in this connection now, he added.
He further said the party had involved young leaders, like SP Goswami, in expanding its base.
Khurshid said efforts would be made to make people aware about their losses in the absence of the Congress. Besides, they would also be informed about the party’s achievements when it was in power in several States, he said.
He went on to say that after completing these yatras, rallies would be organised keeping in mind the importance of the five rivers in UP—the Ganga, Yamuna, Ghaghra, Gomti and Rapti. These rallies, to be taken out after March 15, might cover several areas with boats, he added.
On the issue of Aligarh Muslim University, Khurshid said the Congress was of the opinion that AMU was a minority institution and they would consider options for restoring its minority status. However, he said the decision of the judiciary had to be taken into account and “we have to wait for the Supreme Court’s decision on this issue.”
He said the issue of reservation to minorities in Andhra Pradesh was pending in the apex court and the SC decision would certainly provide a clear picture.
He accused Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav and Urban Development Minister Mohd Azam Khan of playing “cheap” politics in the name of reservation and said Muslims, who were identified as backwards, should get their share in reservation.
On the Iran issue, he said India had cordial relations with Iran and it was India which bought time for Iran after the first voting at the international forum. He said: “In diplomacy, every benefit cannot be enjoyed immediately and sometimes it takes time.”
He said Iran was a member of the Non-Proliferation Treaty and it was bound to follow some norms. However, he said the stand taken by Iran might fetch good results.
Meanwhile, earlier, Khurshid concluded a State-level camp of the Sewa Dal and dedicated the Ram Kishor Shukla auditorium at the DCC office to the masses, stated a Press release issued by DCC spokesperson Moharram Ali.
