Daijiworld Media Network - Nashik
Nashik, Sep 1: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will visit Maharashtra for a one-day trip to Nashik on Wednesday to review the party's organisational preparedness, meet senior state leaders and tribal representatives, and interact with newly appointed district presidents.
Gandhi will interact with the newly appointed district Congress presidents at the conclusion of a 10-day training programme being held in Nashik. The Maharashtra Congress appointed 69 new district and city presidents in May as part of an organisational revamp.
The visit will be Gandhi's second trip to Maharashtra since August 22, when he attended the Pune leg of the "Chhatron Ki Goonj" student movement against paper leaks, examination irregularities and rising fees. He dedicated the Pune event to the "daughters of the nation" and spoke about issues concerning women's safety, rights and social control, while criticising what he described as the "Manusmriti mindset."
The Nashik visit is expected to focus on strengthening the Congress organisation and sharpening its political strategy in Maharashtra. The party governed the state independently until 1995 and later ruled in alliance with the Nationalist Congress Party between 1999 and 2014. Congress was also part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government from 2019 to 2022.
During his visit, Gandhi is scheduled to address a gathering on "Global Politics and India". He is expected to speak about the changing global order, the limitations of current diplomatic approaches and the need to develop democratic production economies.
Gandhi will also meet tribal students and representatives of the tribal community to discuss their concerns. "He will meet a delegation of students and representatives of the tribal community and discuss their issues," a Congress leader said.
Gandhi has previously raised concerns over government-run hostels for tribal students, alleging that they face humiliating rules, unsafe facilities and inhumane conditions.
The issue was also raised by a tribal student who participated in the August 22 "Chhatron Ki Goonj" event. On August 24, Gandhi wrote to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis seeking his intervention after six tribal students began an indefinite hunger strike in Pune.
The 17-day hunger strike ended on August 29 after Fadnavis accepted the students' demands, including recruitment to 12,500 posts. On Tuesday, tribal students staged a protest in Nashik, ahead of Gandhi's scheduled visit.