Sonia, Rahul rallies in Gujarat cut down due to security

The Congress has drastically cut down the number of public meetings for its top leaders in Gujarat this week due to security concerns, party officials said Monday.

The Congress has drastically cut down the number of public meetings for its top leaders in Gujarat this week due to security concerns, party officials said Monday.

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The national headquarters of the Congress in New Delhi last week turned down the Gujarat unit's plea for a series of public meetings for party president Sonia Gandhi, general secretary Rahul Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh across the state with more meetings in the cities and towns of the Saurahstra region in western Gujarat, the officials said.

The first to arrive in Gujarat April 24 for campaigning would be the Congress chief who will address public meetings only in Jetpur in Saurashtra, Halol in central Gujarat and Jeralu in north Gujarat, leaving out major cities such as Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Surat and Vadodara, before she returns to New Delhi in the evening.

Rahul Gandhi would be holding only road shows amid tight security in Ahmedabad, Vadodara and Surat April 26. He will return to the national capital the same day.

The prime minister, who would be on a campaign tour of the state April 27, will not be addressing any public meeting and instead meet prominent citizens, intellectuals and acamedicians in select meetings to be organised by the Congress' state unit in Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Vadodara and Surat. He will also return to New Delhi the same day, the officials added.