RAHUL GANDHI

Lashing out at non-Congress governments of Uttar Pradesh for "selling Ram, caste and religion" for the past 22 years, Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi today asked voters to give five years to his party for development of the state. "These parties have looted your hard earned money, sold Ram, religion and caste...never talked about progress and development in the past 22 years," Gandhi said addressing an election meeting here. The Congress general secretary said that he visits other states marching ahead on the path of progress and see people of the state contributing and the lack of development is UP fills him with anger. Attacking the BJP for its India Shining slogan of 2004 and Samajwadi Party for embracing former BJP leader Kalyan Singh, he said that his party has stood alone and never embraced people like Kalyan Singh and would not do so ever. Stressing that he would not budge till the state's progress is in place, Gandhi said that there was...

Rahul Gandhi has evolved as an effective communicator and a true leader of the masses during his frantic campaign in the poll-bound Uttar Pradesh.  Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi is making the most out of his stint at the helm of party's campaign for the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections. The impact of his personal touch to politics' strategy will only be known on March 6 - when the counting of votes will be undertaken - but at a personal level, political commentators believe, Rahul is going from strength to strength as a leader of the masses.

SP's progressive face, Akhilesh Yadav carries an iPhone & talks development. The Samajwadi state chief assures Swati Mathur his party's aggressive image is a thing of the past & he is confident of forming the next govt Swati Mathur: How well are you prepared for the assembly elections? Akhilesh Yadav: SP was the first to declare candidates. We started campaigning early. Our message was consistent: We'd continue riding the rath and our cycle until we defeat BSP. I have toured over 170 constituencies and hope to cover at least 300. Apart from anti-incumbency , what other factors may work in your favour? SP has worked hard to expose the government's real face. We have grass-roots connect. We have raised issues that concern the common man. Electricity, corruption and lack of infrastructure , cheaper fertilizers, seeds and irrigation projects are issues we've fought for. This election is being projected as a Akhilesh vs Rahul battle. Is this hype? He may be th...

NEW DELHI: Smarting under Opposition attack over the issue of Lokpal Bill, Congress today insisted that the measure is not dead and will be back soon. "The Lokpal Bill is certainly not dead. It is not even in ICU or Emergency. It is merely under rest and recovery (R and R) and it will be back soon," Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said. A political war has broken out between government and opposition over Rajya Sabha's failure to pass Lokpal Bill, with both sides accusing each of carrying out "well choreographed" chaos to scuttle it. The assertion by the Rajya Sabha MP, who headed the Parliamentary Panel that went into the Lokpal Bill, comes a day after Rahul Gandhi promised not to rest till a strong Lokpal Bill with constitutional status is brought. Addressing a rally in Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh yesterday, Gandhi had hit out at the BJP for failure to give constitutional status to Lokpal. He insisted that this was not only his dream but that of the y...

SITAPUR: "Has Mayawati ever drunk water from a well in the past five years," asks Rahul Gandhi, rolling up his sleeves, the trademark style he has acquired before addressing a gathering. "No," roars the crowd in Sitapur, a town in central Uttar Pradesh, about 95 km north of Lucknow. "Is it not your right to get jobs in your own state," he asks and pauses for the crowd to answer. "Why do you need to migrate to other states for a livelihood," he asks again, sounding very much like a seasoned politician. Rahul, the tireless campaigner, has been a familiar sight these past four years. The Congress general secretary has hopped onto general compartments of trains, spent nights in huts and eaten with villagers, especially Dalits. But Rahul, the public speaker, has largely been in hiding. The Congress leader has been at best a hesitant speaker. That is changing. Rahul's new style of speech is as measured as it is aggressive. The crowds respond...

When Digvijaya Singh was chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, the 6am queue of citizens at his home could often be seen handing their memorandums to or chatting with a young boy. Now 24, the boy is set to become the latest political son to enter the family profession. Jaivardhan Singh, son of Congress general secretary and “Raja of Raghogarh” Digvijaya, can expect some sort of rivalry with a fellow royal and Dosco, 16-year-old Scindia scion Mahaaryaman, who cut his political teeth a year ago. On December 21, Jaivardhan will start a 150km padayatra in Raghogarh, taking a short break from the MBA programme in rural development he is doing at America’s Columbia University. The former Doon School student plans to spend eight days and nights with villagers. “He will be spending nights at Dalit and tribal homes. The idea is to familiarise himself with the issues of the real India. Jaivardhan hopes to become a true follower of Rahul Gandhi,” said a Digvijaya confidant who did not want t...

BADAUN, UP: Accusing Mayawati and Mulayam Singh Yadav of playing caste politics, Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday sought a change in power saying a "government of the poor" by Congress in Uttar Pradesh will change the future of the state. Gandhi, who is on the second day of his five-day trip in the Samajwadi Party stronghold, alleged Mayawati government was corrupt and the money meant for poor does not reach them. "Elephants normally eat leaves. But you have magic elephant in Lucknow which eats currency notes," he told a party rally here ahead of the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls. Seeking a five-year stint in power, he said corruption in UP government was affecting the future of the state as no employment opportunity is generated in the state. "UPiites have built roads in Maharashtra, they work in Kerala, they help the farmers in Punjab...but they do not have roads, electricity or water in their villages. Who built the Delhi Metro? Who is working in ...

Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi today faced an angry crowd which raised angry slogans against him when he went to meet the victims of the high court bomb blast at the Ram Manohar Lohia hospital. He reached the hospital in the afternoon and spent nearly half an hour with the victims and their family members. Gandhi sought to know from the hospital administration the nature of the injuries suffered by the victims in the blast. While leaving the hospital, the hostile crowd of relatives of the victims raised slogans 'Rahul Gandhi Sharam karo, Rahul Gandhi vapas jao'. 

Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi, who had gone to the US to bring back his mother Sonia, has returned to the national capital. Rahul had gone to the US some days ago amid clear indications from the party that the Congress president was recovering well post surgery and expected to be back in the national capital by the first week of September. Highly placed party sources confirmed the return of the AICC general secretary. They said Sonia Gandhi has not yet returned, but indicated that she could be back here shortly. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who was staying with her mother, was also back here some 10 days ago in an indication that the Congress president was recovering well. The 64-year-old Congress president had undergone a surgery for an undisclosed ailment in a US hospital on August 4. Sonia Gandhi had constituted a four-member team of Rahul Gandhi, AK Antony, Ahmed Patel and Janardhan Dwivedi to look after party affairs in her absence.

Congress circles are abuzz with rumor that party president Sonia Gandhi on her return from abroad may delegate more of her powers to her son and party general secretary Rahul Gandhi, who may take over as working president, Mail Today, a Delhi tabloid reported.  Sonia Gandhi is expected in Delhi in a day or two after a month long stay in New York where she underwent treatment for an undisclosed ailment.   The Mail Today report said that the party rank and file is feeling "rudderless" to counter the Anna Hazare blitz in the absence of Sonia Gandhi, with senior ministers giving conflicting signals on the Lokpal issue.   The report, says there is speculation that Sonia Gandhi may take more time to recuperate. Despite a series of crises which dogged the party during the month of August, the party was yet to convene a single high-level meeting to discuss the drift in her absence.  The party and the government had been adopting a hardline approach towards Anna Hazare, by ar...

Our President Smt. Pratibha Patil, Congress President and Widow of Late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi Smt Sonia Gandhi and our nation present Prime Minister Manmohan Singh paid floral tributes to the Rajiv Gandhi at his commemorative plaque ‘Veer Bhumi’ in Delhi. Priyanka Vadra and Rahul Gandhi also paid tribute to their father who was murdered by the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) group on 21 st May, 1991 at Sriperum budur in Tamil Nadu at the time of voting campaign. Rajiv Gandhi was the youngest Prime Minister of India who whispered office at 40 years of age. He is memorized for development and modernization of India’s telecommunication commerce. He also played the vital role for education system, increase of science and technology plans and improving national affairs with USA. He changed the voting system and managed to limit the age of voting to 18 years. Rajiv Gandhi’s death anniversary May 21 is also pragmatic as Anti-Terrorism Day in our nation.

Rahul is the latest member of the Gandhi dynasty that is thrown into the political arena in India. Its decision, taken in late March, surprised both the political class and the electorate. For the opposition meant the "best evidence of the desperation of the Congress Party [founded by Jawaharlal Nehru, Rahul's great-grandfather] in their struggle to regain power." For supporters of the Congress, Rahul's arrival is a "breath of fresh air both political dinosaur." Eldest son of assassinated former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, Rahul, 34, completed his university studies between the U.S. and the UK, a country where he met his Spanish girlfriend, of which only says his name is Veronica, who was born in Venezuela and now in Spain. Although even his enemies see him as the future leader of India, Rahul said that currently only aims to solve the problems of the people of his constituency.  Question. Why so suddenly decided to enter politics? Response. I decided not ...

BJP (Bhartiya Janta Party) is trying to bring the Varun Gandhi against congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi. According to them Rahul Gandhi created hurricane in UP, especially in Young generation leaders. Those who are close to Varun Gandhi says “The other Gandhi is slowly and cautiously getting ready for a bigger position in the state as the political parties think it can be profitable on his young generation, his domestic conditions and rhetoric to control a BJP restoration in a state where the party might obtain merely 10 out of 80 places in the previous Lok Sabha voting. "There is a huge and powerful part inside the BJP that needs a better position for him in the state. They need a youthful energetic candidate to be its face in Uttar Pradesh. Few people still require him to be the candidate of the party's youth division as the party lacking of young politicians," said a party resource. "The party is in mess in the state in spite of having elder leaders from ...