Going nowhere,Cong calls off UP yatras

The second phase of Congress yatras in Uttar Pradesh.

The second phase of Congress yatras in Uttar Pradesh,which began on November 19,will officially conclude on December 28 amidst much confusion. The party has decided not to organise any yatras in 2011 and,instead,focus on public meetings.

The yatras were planned in order to reach out to people in all corners of the state. While the first phase,which started on April 14 and concluded before the onset of the monsoon,did see partys workers making an effort to connect with the people,the second phase failed to make any impact.

In fact,no one even in the party knows about the current status of the nine yatras.

In order to salvage the situation,senior party leaders had at one stage thought of bringing all the yatras to Mathura or Banda in Bundelkhand and converting these into a big rally to be addressed by AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi. However,two days before the second phase concludes,theres no sign of any grand rally.

Congress leaders avoid questions about the closing ceremony,with some even saying that yatras have already concluded. Others say yatras may not be able to cover all the constituencies assigned to them. Yet others say a function to mark the 125th foundation day of the Congress would be held at the party headquarters here on December 28.

By December 6,I had completed the constituencies that my yatra had to cover. As far as the rallies of Rahul Gandhi in Mathura or Banda are concerned,these will take place when we get a date from him, said Pradeep Mathur,Congress MLA from Mathura and in charge of the second phase.

AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh clarified that there will be no rally to mark the conclusion because majority of the yatras have already been completed.

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Singh,who said it would be wrong to say that the second phase was dull,added,We will start the next round of our programmes across UP on December 28 itself but it would not be in the form of yatras. Instead,it would be in the form of public rallies and agitations to raise public issues.

R P Tripathi,the co-ordinator of yatras,said,The December 28 programme at party headquarters will mark the foundation day celebrations,and not the conclusion of yatras.