Lucknow: The Congress party in Uttar Pradesh has decided to take out a statewide 12,000-km yatra later this month to kick off its 2022 assembly elections campaign officially.
The two-week ‘Congress Pratigya Yatra’ has been themed: “Hum Vachan Nibhayenge” (we will keep our word). During the campaign, the party will highlight its promises on farm loan waiver, free electricity for farmers, compensation for those who got affected due to stray animals, jobs for youth and women’s security, among others. However, the party hasn’t released its manifesto yet.
It will also seek to target the Yogi Adityanath government for its alleged failure to deliver on promises.
According to party functionaries, the campaign will start in the last week of September, with the Congress UP in-charge Priyanka Gandhi Vadra as its face.
The announcement was made after Priyanka reviewed the party’s poll strategy in a series of meetings at the UP Congress Committee headquarters in the state capital Friday.
The Congress was reduced to seven seats in the 2017 assembly polls. In the upcoming elections, the party has more at stake, with Priyanka in-charge of the state. Party functionaries are hopeful that her presence will help the party to improve its position.
Also read: Six months after 4-year celebration, BJP plans another for 4.5 years of Yogi govt across UP
How the yatra will be held
A senior party functionary said the yatra will be divided into five zones — Varanasi, Jhansi, Ayodhya, Agra and Saharanpur. “We will cover around 62 districts in this yatra. It will be 12,000 km, including all the blocks and several villages of these districts,” the leader said on condition of anonymity.
Present and former MP, MLAs, and senior local leaders will travel to every block of their respective zones and address the public in choupals.
“They will tell people about our ‘vachans’ (promises)… Though we have not released our manifesto, some key points we have prepared are regarding farm loan waiver, free electricity for farmers, compensation for those who got affected due to stray animals. It also includes jobs for youth and women security promises,” the leader said.
Senior leaders like Pramod Tiwari, Rajesh Mishra, Pradeep Aditya Jain, Imran Masood and P.L. Punia are expected to lead the yatra along with Priyanka. Young leaders like state unit chief Ajay Lallu, Lalitesh Pati Tripathi and Aradhna Mishra will also have an important role, said a second functionary who didn’t wish to be named.
“These leaders will also tell the public about the Yogi Adityanath government’s failure to keep its promises,” the first functionary added.
Priyanka to be face of yatra, but no decision on CM candidate
The UP Congress has started preparing creatives for the yatra, with Priyanka Gandhi Vadra as its face even though it hasn’t decided on the party’s chief ministerial candidate, said a third UP Congress leader.
“Priyanka Gandhi will also join yatra in all five zones on different days of the last week of this month. In this way she will reach all parts of UP and meet common masses,” said the second functionary quoted above.
Creatives on rising inflation, poor health services, unemployment, corruption, and crimes against women will also be prepared, the leader said, adding that the message of “32 Saal UP Behaal” (32 years, UP ruined) will be conveyed, in a bid to target the bad governance of the previous Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party and the current BJP governments.
A five-member media communication team has been made to coordinate this yatra, said Anshu Awasthi, a member of the team and a spokesperson in the party’s UP unit.
The yatra will “expose” the BJP government for not keeping promises and also present our party as an alternative. According to him, the public is fed up with the ruling BJP. “Other opposition parties are not so active on the ground. Our party is the only alternative at present. We have to convince the common masses through this yatra,” he added.
Also read: Mamata shadow on Oppn unity as she says BJP can ‘silence’ Mulayam, Pawar, Congress but not TMC