Rahul Gandhi, the All-India Congress Committee general-secretary and the man leading the revival of the party's youth wing, may have suffered a setback in the Bihar assembly elections. But his supporters are putting a distance between the Congress defeat and the 'Rahul effect'.
The Congress will launch a nationwide campaign against the repeal of the United Progressive Alliance-era rural employment legislation Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) on January 5, similar to the pushback against the three farm laws which eventually forced the Narendra Modi government to rollback its decision, party president Mallikarjun Kharge said.
Making a veiled attack on the Mayawati government, Congress General Rahul Gandhi said an "elephant" in Lucknow was eating away all the money sent by the Centre for the poor in Uttar Pradesh.
Though there is a full-throated clamour in the Congress that party vice-president Rahul Gandhi be formally named as its prime ministerial candidate for the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the Nehru-Gandhi scion is personally not convinced that his projection will yield electoral dividends.
Visiting Uttar Pradesh for the first time after Congress' debacle in the recent Assembly polls, Rahul Gandhi was on Monday flooded with complaints that groupism, poor candidate selection and neglect of grassroot level workers were mainly responsible.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday visited the house of a Central Reserve Police Force jawan who was among the 76 security personnel killed in the Maoist attack in Dantewada in April and assured the family of full support from the Central government.
Sources said Sidhu's resignation has not been received by the party and its leadership will take a call once it reaches them.
Rahul Gandhi mostly stayed away from the elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, choosing to focus on the Bharat Jodo Yatra.
Maharashtra Chief Minster Ashok Chavan on Thursday condemned Uddhav and Raj Thackeray for 'touching a new low' in politics with their comments on All India Congress Committee general secretary Rahul Gandhi. "Nowhere in Indian politics has such a low level of personal allegations been witnessed. I condemn their (Uddhav and Raj Thackeray) utterances," said Chavan.
Rahul Gandhi is not to be blamed if the Congress does not perform well in the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, whose results will be out on Tuesday, party leaders said on Saturday. "A leader creates an atmosphere. To convert that atmosphere into votes and seats is the responsibility of candidates and the organisation," All India Congress Committee general secretary in-charge for Uttar Pradesh Digvijay Singh said.
The agitational programmes include the 'Loktantra Bachao Mashal Shanti March' starting from Red Fort on Tuesday and a series of press conferences in 35 major cities across the country on March 28 and 29.
Rahul Gandhi arrives in Kashmir Valley on Thursday on a two-day visit, bringing along a strong business delegation that will include Ratan Tata and Kumar Manglam Birla, to a state seeking more investments.
Having put up a dismal show in the Bihar polls, Congress on Wednesday said it was a "tough time" for party politics in the state and that it will analyse why huge crowds in rallies of its top leaders could not translate into votes.
The Congress announced on Thursday that it would not field candidates in the nine assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh where bypolls are being held and would support Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) nominees.
The Congress Working Committee finally accepted Rahul Gandhi's resignation during its second meeting of the day.
Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday traveled across Jharkand and visited some of the Maoist-affected districts in the state which have been rocked by an upsurge in Maoist violence in the recent weeks. Jharkand has been under President's rule since January and there is speculation that assembly elections may be held by the end of this year. Besides Sahebganj, Rahul also visited Dhanbad, Hazaribagh and Dumka, some of which have been hit by Maoist violence.
Rahul Gandhi on Thursdat claimed seven out of 10 youths in Punjab have a drug problem, triggering a controversy with ruling the Akali Dal asking how the Congress leader came to this "mathematical conclusion" on drug addiction in the state.
The Congress on Friday said its top leaders, including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, President Sonia Gandhi and General Secretary Rahul Gandhi will campaign in poll-bound Gujarat.
Filmmaker Vikram Bhatt has said the reinstatement of R R Patil as Maharashtra's home minister, a few days before the anniversary of the terror attack on Mumbai, was the government's way of telling citizens that what they feel is not important. In an open letter to All India Congress Committee general secretary Rahul Gandhi, Bhatt said the attitude behind all the political manoeuvring has hurt him."R R Patil sits here as the symbol of the impotent rage of a nation," he said.
The party's top leadership, which is now looking for a replacement for Gandhi, will have a new team once the new Congress chief is appointed and some more resignations are likely to pour in till then.
Gandhi alleged that assembly and Lok Sabha polls were being "stolen" across the country and there was a "conspiracy" in Bihar to do the same through the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
Rahul Gandhi may also contest from Amethi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra from Rae Bareli, a seat which was previously held by Sonia Gandhi.
'Priyanka Gandhi play is not only about winning allies and lifting spirits; it's also about cash'
Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu will meet senior party leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in Delhi on June 29, sources in his office said.
As Rahul Gandhi continued his kisan padyatra for the second consecutive day on Wednesday, Uttar Pradesh's ruling Bahujan Samaj Party claimed that his "love" for farmers is mere a political drama in view of the forthcoming assembly elections in the state.
The Congress on Wednesday filed a police complaint over the recent statements of leaders belonging to the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) targeting Rahul Gandhi.
The Congress is gearing up to demonstrate a political show of strength on Monday when the party leader Rahul Gandhi will appear before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection in connection with a money laundering case linked to the National Herald newspaper.
'Vijay did not defeat Dravidian politics from outside. He entered the Dravidian field and claimed ownership of it. 'His argument was not that the room should be destroyed. It was that the present occupants no longer deserved to remain in it.'
Gehlot was made the chief minister of Rajasthan after the party formed government in the state.
Confusion prevailing in the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) showed little signs of let up on Saturday, with just two days to go before the filing of nomination papers for the second and final phase of assembly elections comes to a close.
Sources said a couple of resolutions are expected to be passed at the crucial meeting, with an eye on the upcoming Bihar polls.
The Congress on Thursday said it will continue to avail all options still available under the law after a Gujarat court rejected Rahul Gandhi's application for a stay on his conviction in a criminal defamation case.
Priyanka Gandhi's charge were the key seats of Lucknow, Amethi, Raebareli, Sultanpur, Gorakhpur, Varanasi, Phulpur, Allahabad, Barabanki, and Kushinagar.
Rahul Gandhi visits the Mata Kheer Bhawani temple and the Hazratbal shrine in Kashmir.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday joined the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Pandavapura, participating in a public event of the party after a long gap.
Sources said Sonia Gandhi referred to Azad and others twice during her brief address and the issues raised by them.
Workers from the BJP and Congress clashed in Patna during a protest march organized by the BJP against the use of abusive language towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi's late mother. The protest turned violent, with stone pelting and vandalism reported. Police intervened to control the situation, and an investigation is underway.
The merger was sealed on Friday during a meeting between Badal and Rahul at the latter's residence here where Singh and All India Congress Committee General Secretary Shakeel Ahmad were also present, they said.
The Congress vice president has taken up the daunting task of bringing in a sea change in the working of the party, but also faces opposition from some old guards and regional satraps, notes Anita Katyal.
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was given a rousing welcome by thousands of people, including United Democratic Front leaders and workers, at Kalpetta in Wayanad on Wednesday as she prepares to make her electoral debut by filing nomination papers for the coming Lok Sabha bypoll.
