Akhilesh-Rahul road show in Kashi on March 4
VARANASI : Samajwadi Party (SP) national president Akhilesh Yadav and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi will hold a 15-kilometre road show in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s parliamentary constituency Varanasi on March 4.
Starting from the Reserve Police Lines, the road show will cover the Cantonment, Varanasi North and Varanasi South assembly constituencies in the heart of the holy city, all represented by the BJP. Varanasi goes to poll in the seventh and last phase of the UP assembly election on March 8. The last phase covers 40 assembly seats in seven districts. The two leaders are likely to address the public at Peeli Kothi, Maidagin or Godowlia and Lanka intersection during the road show and interact with some local youths. SP district unit president Piyush Yadav said, “The road show will pass through Chauka Ghat, Golgadda, Adampur, Maidagin and Bhelupur. It will conclude at Lanka intersection. We will make the event grand.”
UP Congress spokesperson Satish Rai said, “The two leaders will address people from the rath. They may also interact with some youths on way.”Both the parties have made elaborate arrangements for the road show. Samajwadi Party sources said some SP workers will don Akhilesh masks and paint the party colours on their forehead.
Equipped with laptops and cameras, an SP war room team will accompany the road show for live updates on the party’s website, its Facebook page and Twitter account. Poll strategist Prashant Kishor’s team has arrived in Varanasi with 20 video raths (vans) which are touring the three assembly constituencies. This will be Akhilesh’s first election event in Varanasi.
Political analysts say road show will boost the campaign of the alliance candidates in the region. The Varanasi district has eight assembly constituencies, including five in Varanasi parliamentary constituencies. The SP has Rohania and Sevapuri, two of the five seats. The BJP holds three seats: Cantonment, Varanasi South and Varanasi North.
Pindra is the sole seat that the Congress won in the 2012 assembly polls. The BSP won Ajgara and Shivpur.