DAHOD: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday asked party MLAs in the BJP-ruled Gujarat to remain in constant touch with people in their respective constituencies and vociferously raise their issues as ways to win the confidence of voters as he delivered a pep talk to legislators ahead of the Assembly polls and said the state unit target of winning 125 seats was achievable.
After addressing a rally, Gandhi held a closed-door meeting with Congress MLAs at an auditorium in Dahod city of Gujarat. The former Congress president also met the party's tribal leaders in Gujarat separately at the same venue.
Independent MLA Jignesh Mevani, who won from Vadgam in Banaskantha district in 2017 with the Congress support, also attended the meeting.
"Rahulji asked all the MLAs to remain in constant touch with people. He told us that people will put trust in us if we fight for them and resolve their issues," Congress MLA Himmatsinh Patel told reporters after the meeting.
Senior Congress MLA Shailesh Parmar said Gandhi told the legislators that the party, which is in the opposition in the state for more than two decades now, will form the next government in Gujarat by winning 125 seats (a target set by the state unit) out of the total 182.
"He said the party will fight the elections on issues concerning farmers, youths, tribals and Scheduled Castes. Unemployment will also be a major issue in the ensuing polls. Rahulji also congratulated all the 64 sitting MLAs for being in the Congress despite the BJP's tactics to break the party," said Parmar.
The Congress's Dalit MLA, Naushad Solanki, said Gandhi expressed concern over party workers not being able to convince people about price rise under the BJP rule and its adverse impact on their lives.
"Though people are suffering a lot due to price rise, Rahulji said Congress workers were still lagging behind in creating that perception among the masses," said Solanki.
Young Congress MLA Vimal Chudasama said the Lok Sabha MP from Wayanad asked legislators to share issues region-wise such as Saurashtra, north Gujarat, south Gujarat and western Gujarat.
Mevani, who also attended the meeting, said Gandhi asserted it is possible for the Congress to win the Assembly elections in Gujarat, due by the year-end, this time as the party had narrowly missed the majority mark in 2017.
In the previous elections, the BJP retained power by winning 99 seats, while the Congress won 77. Later, several Congress MLAs resigned and joined the BJP.