The Congress formally launched its campaigning in the Ujjain-Alote parliamentary constituency on Monday by organising workers meeting of Ujjain North and Ujjain South Assembly constituencies. However, controversies over-shadowed these events as fed-up with long speeches and delayed arrival of district minister in-charge Sajjan Singh Verma, the Ujjain North workers’ meeting at Manorama Garden, Arvind Nagar lacked strength.
Likewise, the venue of Ujjain South workers’ meeting at Pt Suryanarayan Vyas Cultural Complex at Kalidas Sanskrit Academy had to be changed following objection from the BJP, which stated that the venue is a government building. Finally, the meeting venue was shifted to a hotel premises, Astha Garden. Interestingly, every party leader who addressed the gathering wanted to see RaGa as Prime Minister but strangely the organisers forgot to put up RaGa’s photo at the backdrops.
Arrived late but intervened twice
The Ujjain North workers’ meeting was to start at noon but the District minister in-charge reached at 2 pm. In this meeting, the anchor urged the speakers to limit their speech to five-minute but they did not bother and gave long speeches. Some of them even leveled allegations with regard to sabotage and groupism in the party during the assembly elections-2018.
Before the situation could take an ugly turn, Sajjan Verma took the mike and asked the speakers not to utter such words which can hurt others. Later he intervened in the proceedings and said if workers’ meetings were lasted for four hours, it would not serve the purpose and we should mobilise our workers to reach the venue in large number. He had to say this as most of the workers started leaving the venue and assembled outside.
WORKERs DEMAND EQUAL STATUS
Prominent among those who addressed the meeting were Manohar Bairagi, Satya Narayan Pawar, Sultan Shah Lala, Rajendra Vasishtha, Anant Narayan Meena, Zila Panchayat president Karan Kumaria, Yogesh Sharma, Sanjay Singh Thakur, Chetan Yadav, Mahesh Soni, Kamal Patel and Anju Jatwa. During the meeting, party worker Ashok Yadav raised objection to long list of senior leaders and demanded to give opportunity to audience also.
When he was called on the dais, Yadav said there should be no discrimination between leaders and party workers and they should sit on a common platform. Most of the speakers said that only Congress symbol and Rahul Gandhi should be kept in mind during elections.
Candidate clarifies he was not inactive
Congress candidate Babulal Malviya claimed that though he worked as Tarana Janpad Panchayat president, Tarana MLA and Minister of State for PWD, he did not like show-game. Referring to his criticisms that he remains inactive in public life for last 15 years, he said he did all party works by remaining in last line. He spoke for 20 minutes and called him as ordinary worker.
He urged the partymen to support him as he was tipped by RaGa as per their wishes. He promised that he would try to work for party men and would maintain their honour and dignity. He also promised that he would not do any such work which can bring a bad name for the Congress. When Malviya was speaking, most of the workers present there left the venue and started lunch.
Minister’s two proposals
Addressing workers, Sajjan Verma tabled two proposals. First, speakers should address urban and rural unit presidents only and secondly, not to exploit party workers by forcing them to sit for hours in the name of meetings. Attacking Modi, he said the PM forgot all those promises he and the BJP made during the Lok Sabha Elections-2014. He said neither Rs 15 lakh was deposited in the bank account of people nor 2 crore jobs were given to unemployed youths. He said that they made tall claims with regard to scrapping of Article 370 of the Constitution and constructing Ram Temple at Ayodhya, but did nothing despite having full majority in the Lok Sabha.
Now, again they are repeating same assurances. Referring to the I-T raids on close aides of Chief Minister Kamal Nath, Verma said that there were a few businessmen who support the Congress, but there are hosts of businessmen who openly support the BJP, but the Congress during its rule never did such revengeful steps. He claimed that the promise made in the Congress manifesto to provide Rs 72, 000 per year to every poor family would prove to be a milestone.