Bihar Congress gears up for Rahul’s rally, holds series of events to woo masses

All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge of Bihar, Shaktisinh Gohil, addressed locality-wise public meetings to invite the people to the rally and targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his failure to deliver on his promises.

The state Congress held a series of programmes, including public meetings, to mobilise people’s support for the much-talked about ‘Jan Akansha’ rally to be addressed by Congress president Rahul Gandhi here on February 3.

Bihar Congress Incharge Shakti Singh Gohil with state president Madan Mohan Jha are giving flag off rath for party’s Jan Akanksha Rally at the campus of Sadaquat Ashram in Patna. Bihar India on Monday. (Santosh kumar/Hindustan Times)

All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge of Bihar, Shaktisinh Gohil, addressed locality-wise public meetings to invite the people to the rally and targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his failure to deliver on his promises.

Gohil said the state remained deprived of even the special package, even though Modi had promised special status to Bihar during his election meetings in 2014. “Curbing corruption, reining in price rise, generating employment and revamping the farm sectors have been completely sidelined in the era of Modi government,” he said.

Taking on the Nitish Kumar-led NDA dispensation in the state, Gohil said the people were in the mood for change, both at the state as well as at the national level. “Double engine government rests in words only, while people in general are left to fend for themselves in the face of elusive development,” he said.

At another function, former chief minister of Meghalaya Mukul Sangma said the Congress manifesto for 2019 Lok Sabha elections would be in accordance with people’s aspirations. “We are not the party like the BJP, which forgets all its promises after winning the elections. The last five years of Modi as PM have shown that the BJP hardly matches words in action,” Sangma told media persons at the BPCC office.

Sangma was here in connection with the party’s plan of including the issues of people’s concerns in the Congress manifesto for the upcoming LS polls. Sangma also held consultations with eminent personalities of state on the issue of ‘Centre-state relations, border issues, migration and regional issues at a programme organised by the BPCC manifesto committee at AN Sinha institute.

Gohil also interacted with senior Congress leaders at a feast hosted by senior party leader and MLA Ramdev Rai and local leaders’ preparations for the rally. Sources in the party said some of the leaders also urged Gohil to strive for a reasonable and respectable seat sharing with the allies, as the party had made elaborate arrangement to wrest the maximum number of seats.

BPCC president Madan Mohan Jha, chairman of the BPCC campaign committee Akhilesh Prasad Singh, AICC secretary in-charge Rajesh Rathore, AICC media panellist and MLC Prem Chandra Mishra, in-charge of media committee KH Verma and chairman of the state manifesto committee Anand Madhab attended various programmes organised by the party today.

New entries

Abrar Siddiqui, national general secretary of JD(U)’s minority cell, joined Congress at Sadaquat Ashram on Monday

Afsar Alam, son of former RJD minister Anwar Ahmad, and former MLA Raghunath Manjhi also accepted the Congress membership ahead of the rally

President of Bihar Vaishya Mahasammelan Jagannath Gupta has also joined Congress