Congress plan to invoke Nehru legacy for Rahul rally hits a wall

“We have been asking our men to search for freedom fighters or simply those who were present when Pandit Nehru visited here. But the feedback has not been very encouraging. We will try over the next couple of days to locate such a person,” said Manish Mishra,secretary of Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee,who is overseeing the rally preparations on the railway ground at Trivenipuram in Jhunsi area.

A senior party worker at the site said the idea behind drawing up such a list of people was to provide a link of sorts from that era to the present-day politics as Rahul plans to fire the first salvo,as it were,in the run-up to the Assembly polls. But the problem is either that such people are already dead or too old to remember much.

A party spokesperson,however,said that freedom fighters have always been invited to Congress events. “Whoever is available will be invited. There are a couple of people over the age of 90 and they will be accorded a warm welcome,” he said.

The party consciously chose Phulpur to launch its public outreach campaign so that it could invoke the name of Nehru. In fact,one of the first hoardings for the rally,as one moves from the city to the venue,welcomes people to the “karmbhoomi” of Pandit Nehru.

The main entry to the venue too would be named “Nehru Dwar” and,claim office-bearers,Rahul is set to begin his day by paying tribute to his great-grandfather at Anand Bhawan.

The first Prime Minister was elected from Phulpur in 1957 and 1962,before the constituency went to his sister Vijay Lakshmi Pandit. Currently,Phulpur constituency is represented by BSP leader Kapil Muni Karwariya.

The Special Protection Group on Friday visited the venue twice to assess security preparedness. Barring minor changes,things are all set to go according to plan,party sources said. State Congress chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi and Congress legislative party leader Pramod Tiwari also visited the spot later in the day.