Sonia, Rahul skip Foundation Day event

NEW DELHI: Congress president Sonia Gandhi and former party chief Rahul Gandhi on Monday gave the party’s 136th Foundation Day event a miss with senior party leader A K Antony unfurling the flag at the AICC headquarters here.

A number of senior party functionaries were present at the meeting, including AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.

Others present included some of the “letter-writers” like Ghulam Nabi Azad and Anand Sharma, who had sought an organisational overhaul in the party, besides Sachin Pilot who revolted against the Congress government in Rajasthan sometime ago.

Sonia Gandhi, who has been avoiding public functions in recent weeks, extended her warm wishes to party workers and backed the farmers’ protest in a 3-minute, 45-second video message. She asserted that “black laws” were being imposed on the farmers. “We have to strengthen the Congress party at the ground level. … let us take a vow today that we will uphold the constitution and democratic values that our country represents,” she said. Thousands of farmers are camping on Delhi’s borders to press for the repeal of three new central agriculture laws.

Later speaking to reporters, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said the government should listen to the voice of farmers. “To say that this is a political conspiracy is wrong. I feel that the words being used for farmers are a sin. The government is answerable to the farmers and the government should talk to the farmers and take back the laws,” she said.

She did not answer queries on Rahul Gandhi’s absence.

Rahul Gandhi left for abroad on Sunday afternoon on a short personal visit and would be away for a few days. The party has not disclosed the location where Gandhi is travelling, but according to sources he has left for Milan.

Taking to Twitter on the occasion, Rahul Gandhi said, “Congress has been committed from the beginning to raise the voice of the nation.”

There could have been 101 reasons for his [Rahul’s] absence. We don’t want to speculate... Priyanka ji is here SALMAN KHURSHID, Senior Congress leader