By Arun Pratap Singh
Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 29 Jan: Senior leaders of the Pradesh Congress Committee today held a joint press conference at the Congress Bhawan and announced an extensive mass contact and agitation programme to raise ‘pressing public issues’ across Uttarakhand. Addressing media persons, state party president Ganesh Godiyal said that senior leaders, office-bearers and party workers would go among the people and take up local issues at the Assembly constituency level through public awareness campaigns and dharna demonstrations for a period of three months. He announced that the Congress would gherao the Lok Bhawan on 16 February to protest against the policies of the state government.
Congress Election Management Committee chairman Harak Singh Rawat said party workers would reach out to the people and raise their voice against what he termed the wrong policies of the state government. Former chief minister Harish Rawat alleged that corruption had pushed the state into an existential crisis and said incidents of crimes against women were rising continuously. Leader of the Opposition Yashpal Arya and Chakrata MLA Pritam Singh said the people of the state were distressed due to rising inflation.
After returning from New Delhi after having a meeting with Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and the Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi on 27 January, these senior party leaders made a visible show of unity by holding each other’s hands and declared that the party would collectively fight for public issues from the state to the district level under the leadership of Ganesh Godiyal.
It may be reminded here that following a lengthy meeting at Indira Bhawan in New Delhi, all the senior leaders of the Uttarakhand Congress returned to Dehradun, where a meeting was held earlier in the day today at the party headquarters to chalk out organisational strategy for the coming period. Godiyal shared that during the Delhi meeting the prevailing situation in the state and the alleged anti-people policies of the BJP government were brought to the notice of party president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi. He said the high command was deeply concerned over the situation in Uttarakhand, including government policies, alleged scams, corruption, crimes against women, administrative failures and irregularities in jobs. All leaders present at the meeting apprised the high command of the ground realities in the state.
Godiyal alleged that the BJP government had broken all records of corruption and said that even in a high-profile case like the Ankita Bhandari murder case, the process of CBI inquiry was not being taken forward transparently. He claimed that despite the recommendation for a CBI probe, no concrete steps had been taken by the government. Leader of the Opposition Yashpal Arya alleged that the BJP government has shattered all records of corruption and said liquor, land and mining mafias were dominating the state. He claimed Uttarakhand had reached the top in crimes against women and alleged that law and order had completely collapsed, resulting in a situation of jungle raj. He said the Congress would now launch a major movement along with the people.
Harak Singh Rawat said all these issues would be raised during the Raj Bhawan gherao in Dehradun on 16 February. Pritam Singh said the condition of the state was deteriorating rapidly and farmers, women and the unemployed were all distressed, while inflation was at its peak. Harish Rawat called upon the party to remain united and intensify the struggle against the policies of the BJP government, while also strongly targeting the government over the Ankita case.
It may be recalled that the Pradesh Congress Committee is preparing a three-month roadmap to raise issues of public interest in Uttarakhand in accordance with the directions given by the party high command on 27 January.
With an eye on the 2027 Assembly elections, the Congress has stepped up its activities, with top leaders at the national level continuously reviewing the party’s functioning. During the meeting in New Delhi, feedback on organisational activities was taken from Uttarakhand in-charge Kumari Selja and state president Ganesh Godiyal, and state leaders were directed to prepare a three-month roadmap to strengthen the organisation.
The meeting also directed that under the nationwide MGNREGA Bachao programme, dharna demonstrations would be organised across the state from 31 January to 6 February, followed by rallies to gherao Assemblies at the state level between 7 February and 16 February. All the senior leaders and party workers have been asked to play an active role in these programmes.
