After roadshow & marathon meetings, Priyanka-Scindia no-show has UP Congress worried

Congress workers’ hopes had risen when the two in-charges visited UP and held marathon meetings. But now they’re waiting for Priyanka & Scindia to come again.

Jyotiradtiya Scindia and Priyanka Gandhi with Rahul Gandhi | Twitter/@JM_Scindia

Lucknow: Three weeks ago, Congress workers in Uttar Pradesh saw a ray of hope in their newly-appointed state in-charges Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Jyotiraditya Scindia. But the foot soldiers are still awaiting news from the leaders, and the enthusiasm that had been evoked in marathon meetings with them last month has given way to speculation and concern about the party’s performance in the Lok Sabha polls.

“On 11 February, at the Congress office in Lucknow, Rahul Gandhi had said that ‘helicopter’ (air-dropped) leaders will not be given importance and those who work on the ground will be encouraged. After those three days when Scindia and Priyanka met workers from Lok Sabha constituencies across the state, there has been no word on when they themselves will come to the state,” said a Congress worker from Lucknow on the condition of anonymity.

Another Congress worker from Ayodhya, who was carrying a resumé which listed his caste, political experience and aim, said: “There has been a boost to the party cadre with the appointment of Priyanka. Unlike the senior leaders’ lackadaisical approach to party work in UP, she seems to care about ground workers’ concerns and opinion.

“However, there is hardly any time left for the Lok Sabha polls, and for the new enthusiasm to help the Congress in the elections, she needs to be seen on the ground.”

Silence at HQ

Following their visit to the state capital amid much fanfare, Priyanka and Scindia were expected to visit eastern and western UP respectively, and interact with voters and party members on the ground. A two-day-long plan for Scindia to visit Agra, Mainpuri, Kannauj, Kanpur and Jhansi had been drawn up and announced, but the programme was later cancelled.

The two leaders, along with party president Rahul Gandhi and UP Congress chief Raj Babbar, did, however, come to the state to meet the families of the Pulwama terror attack victims.

Meanwhile, the Congress headquarters in Lucknow, which had been thronged by supporters and workers during Priyanka and Scindia’s visit, seems to have fallen back into silence, intermittently broken by visits from Babbar and senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid.

Sources in the Congress said the mantle of work had shifted to the six secretaries who have been placed in Scindia’s and Priyanka’s teams.

“Right now, these six secretaries are silently touring the state and collecting feedback and data from the ground. This information is then relayed to the leaders in Delhi,” a senior party leader said.

“Another issue that the party is grappling with is the narrative surrounding the air strikes. It is a tricky terrain to navigate since Congress does not want to appear to be politicising the issue and give an opportunity to the BJP to attack the Congress.”

Strengthening the roots

According to Sachin Naik, one of the six secretaries, the Congress was focusing on strengthening the party’s organisation at the ground level.

“We are talking to people and workers in parliamentary constituencies, getting their feedback on the local issues of the constituency and candidates. These will be incorporated in the party’s manifesto for the elections,” Naik told ThePrint.

“The current focus is on reaching out to our booth-level workers and strengthening the booth-level organisation. Simultaneously, the party is holding meetings of different committees that have been recently formed. For instance, the manifesto committee met in Lucknow Sunday.”