Cong to take out yatra, announce candidates early this time
LUCKNOW : The Congress has blown the poll bugle, deciding to take out a statewide ‘Congress Pratigya Yatra: Hum Vachan Nibhayenge’ (Congress commitment: We will keep our word) to ‘expose’ the BJP government for not keeping promises and also to present the party as an alternative in the 2022 assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh.
A decision has also been taken to declare the Congress candidates for 2022 assembly elections well in advance and not at the last minute.
An announcement to take out the ‘yatra’ was made after Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra reviewed the party’s poll strategy at a series of meetings at the Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee headquarters here on Friday.
“We will take out the ‘Congress Pratigya Yatra: Hum Vachan Nibhayenge’ that will cover a distance of 12,000 km.
Senior party leaders will lead the yatra and reach out to the people. The focus of the ‘yatra’ will be on Yogi Adityanath government’s failure to keep its promises, rising inflation, poor health services, rising unemployment, corruption and rising crime, including crimes against women,” said a senior party leader.
“We are in the process of deciding the routes and other finer details for the ‘yatra’ that may be divided into four or more parts to cover majority of cities and villages across Uttar Pradesh,” said a senior party leader.
A resolution authorising Priyanka to take any decision on selection of candidates was passed at the meeting of Pradesh Election Committee (PEC) that she attended along with senior party leaders.
“The PEC has authorised Priyanka Gandhi to take a final call on selection of candidates. First list of candidates for about 40 candidates is ready. For shortlisting of candidates on other seats, the PEC will meet again on October 5. Priyanka Gandhi has agreed that the party should declare its candidates well in time and not at the last minute” said another leader.
UPCC president Ajay Kumar Lallu and Congress Legislature Party leader Aradhana Mishra confirmed that the party would soon take out the ‘Congress Pratigya Yatra: Hum Vachan Nibhayenge’.
There are indications that the ‘yatra’ may be launched after a week or 10 days. As the process of setting up organizational
structure at block and nyay panchayat level is nearing completion, Priyanka has asked for progress reports about their functioning from the district party presidents.
Out of eight party zones, the organizational structure in four zones came for review on Friday while the functioning of units in remaining four zones would be scrutinized on Saturday.
“The Congress is making all the efforts for 2022 elections. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is leaving no stone unturned to revive the Congress. If the Congress is able to improve performance in the polls it will be a big achievement. But it’s late for the Congress. Voters are aware that all the ‘yatras’ being planned and promises being made now are being done with elections in mind and so it’s not going to help the Congress at this stage,” said Professor SK Dwivedi, former head of the department, political science, Lucknow University.