Congress General Secretary and in-charge of the party’s Uttar Pradesh unit, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, is all set to kick-start ‘Mission UP’ with an eye on the 2022 assembly polls after setting the house in order at the state and district level. In this context Priyanka Gandhi, who was in Saharanpur on Wednesday to address a farmers’ rally, on Thursday took a holy dip at the Sangam a confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati river in Prayagraj on Mauni Amavasya and performed a puja. Priyanka was accompanied by her daughter and Congress MLA Aradhana Misra, party sources said. The Congress leader also visited the Anand Bhawan where she interacted with children from an orphanage, holding a girl in her lap. She also offered flowers at the place where mortal remains of her great grandfather and India’s first Prime Minister Pt Jawaharlal Nehru were kept before being immersed in the Sangam. It is seen that Priyanka has been making efforts to revive the party’s support base in Uttar Pradesh before the assembly elections next year.
GHULAM NABI AZAD IS FINDING IT DIFFICULT TO GET A RAJYA SABHA SEAT
It seems unlikely that Ghulam Nabi Azad will be given another term in the Rajya Sabha because Jammu and Kashmir, from where Azad was in Rajya Sabha, does not currently have an elected assembly. However with assembly elections due in Kerala in May 2021, party sources say that the Congress leadership is unlikely to take a step that may create a political blacklash in the southern state. Earlier Kerala unit of the Congress had reportedly refused to send P Chidambaram to the Rajya Sabha. Meanwhile already, there is talk that Mallikarjun Kharge Congress Leader in the Lok Sabha from 2014 to 2019 will take over as Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha after 15 February, when Azad’s term ends. Azad was among the 23 senior leaders who had written to Sonia Gandhi last year seeking widespread reforms in the party with Anand Sharma as one of the signatories. However while the tremors set off by the letter are yet to settle, the Congress president has appointed many of the writers to key party panels indicating she doesn’t hold it against them. For Rahul Gandhi and his band of loyalists, the effective exit of Azad takes them one step closer to greater control of the party. Party sources say that even though Sonia Gandhi remains Interim President she is no longer involved in day-to-day decisions.
RLD IS TRYING TO GET BACK KISAN BASE IN UTTAR PRADESH THROUGH AGITATION
RLD Vice President and former MP Jayant Chaudhary is working hard to mobilise farmers against farm laws and he had addressed many other mahapanchayats in Bhagpat, Mathura, Bijnore, Shamli and held a rally in Aligarh to show solidarity with the farmers movement and the BKU union leader Rakesh Tikait. And the RLD have been holding series of meetings with the farmers in Uttar Pradesh from 5 February and continue the events till 18 February this year in a bid to reach out to the people over the three contentious farm bills. The campaign will see Jayant Chaudhary Ajit Singh’s son spend seven nights in different villages of Agra and Aligarh division. “In the Chalo Gaon Ki oar campaign, we will make people aware about farm bills by visiting each and every village,” Chaudhary said. “We will also inform them as to how the farmer leaders and members of the Jat community were tortured by the government at several places including the Ghazipur border.” Chaudhary had travelled to the Ghazipur border to meet Rakesh Tikait on 29 January and then attended the mahapanchayat summoned by Naresh Tikait at Muzaffarnagar the same day. Having lost this vote-bank to the BJP over successive elections since 2014, the RLD is now looking to capitalise on growing resentment among Jats against the BJP government in the state over the farmer protests.
PRIME MINISTER PRAISES GHULAM NABI AZAD’S GARDENING SKILLS IN HIS SPEECH
At his farewell in Rajya Sabha, Ghulam Nabi Azad’s gardening skills came to the fore. PM Narendra Modi first spoke about the beautiful garden Azad has at his residence. Modi recalled that garden at Azad’s residence reminded him of the Kashmir Valley’s beauty and always wins prizes in competitions. A teary-eyed Prime Minister Narendra Modi bid a surprisingly emotional farewell saying “my doors are always open for you” as he held back tears.
CONGRESS LOK SABHA MEMBERS OF PUNJAB TO TABLE BILL TO REPEAL FARM LAWS
Congress MPs in Lok Sabha from Punjab on Tuesday announced that they will move a private member’s bill to repeal the three contentious farm laws. Speaking to media, Lok Sabha member and senior Congress leader Manish Tewari said the Repealing and Amendment Bill, 2021, will be moved in the Lower House by a group of party MPs from Punjab including himself, Ms. Preneet Kaur, Ms. Jasbir Singh Gill and Ms. Santokh Chaudhary. Other Congress MPs in the Lok Sabha like Ravneet Bittu, Gurjit Singh Aujala, Mohmmad Siddique and Dr. Amar Singh are also part of the effort. The Congress leaders from Punjab also appealed to other MPs to join the effort to ensure the Centre and the Prime Minister feel the pressure to repeal farm laws. (IPA)