AHMEDABAD: Rahul Gandhi’s Gujarat push hit turbulence as bad weather in Delhi grounded his flight, forcing the cancellation of his second visit to Junagadh’s Congress training camp today.
The camp, aimed at reviving the party in Prime Minister Modi’s home state, has already seen top leadership, including Mallikarjun Kharge, guiding 41 city and district presidents.
Congress plans to finalise a two-year strategy to challenge the BJP’s three-decade dominance in Gujarat.
Rahul Gandhi’s mission to revive the Congress in Gujarat, a state where the party has been in political exile for 30 years, faced a setback today as bad weather in Delhi grounded his flight, forcing the cancellation of his visit to Junagadh.
Rahul was scheduled to return to the foothills of Bhavnath in Junagadh, where a 10-day intensive training camp is underway for 41 newly appointed city and district Congress presidents.
The camp is a cornerstone of Congress’s Sangathan Srijan Abhiyan, designed to rebuild the party from the ground up ahead of crucial state and national battles.
On September 12, Rahul had spent four hours personally mentoring local leaders, signaling the party’s renewed seriousness about Gujarat.
Today, he was expected to participate again and oversee strategy sessions, but Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) chief Amit Chavda confirmed the cancellation, saying, “Today, Rahul Gandhi was scheduled to join us again to mentor the leaders personally and review their progress. Unfortunately, due to severe weather conditions in Delhi, his flight could not take off, and his visit had to be postponed. We now expect him to arrive tomorrow for the camp’s concluding day, where every city and district president will present their action plans and Congress’ vision for the people of Gujarat."
The camp is being conducted with inputs from experts across sectors, focusing on inclusive politics and grassroots outreach without caste or class barriers.
Tomorrow’s concluding session will see district leaders present their programs and Congress’s vision for Gujarat’s future.
However, the absence of some key figures has drawn attention. Gir Somnath district president Punjabbhai Vansh attended only on the opening day and has been missing for the past eight days.
Amreli district Congress chief Pratap Dudhat has also skipped the sessions, a fact noted at the party’s top level. Chavda defended both leaders, attributing their absence to “personal social reasons.”
Congress’s urgency stems from Gujarat’s status as the home turf of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, making every election here symbolically and strategically vital.
The party aims to draft a comprehensive two-year roadmap to challenge the BJP juggernaut.
The electoral data underscores the enormity of Congress’ task. In 2009, the BJP secured 47% of the votes to Congress’s 44%, winning 15 of Gujarat’s 26 Lok Sabha seats.
But 2014 was a game-changer: BJP’s vote share surged to 59% a 12% jump, while Congress fell to 33%, losing all seats.
The 2019 polls deepened this gap, with the BJP rising to 62% and the Congress slipping to 32%, again resulting in a clean sweep for the BJP.
The 2024 elections brought little relief, as Congress managed to win just one seat, marking a symbolic breakthrough but highlighting the uphill battle ahead.
Rahul Gandhi’s push through this leadership camp is Congress’s most aggressive attempt yet to reclaim relevance in Gujarat, a state that has been the BJP’s political fortress for over three decades.
Tomorrow’s session will test whether the party can translate training into a tangible action plan to dent the BJP’s dominance.