Daily News & Analysis
  
 
Oct 30: Colourful balloons in tri-colour soared in the air as Sonia Gandhi stood at the dias at a public rally at Chakur in Latur, on Sunday.

The Congress president did some straight talking: she asked the Maharashtra government to ensure no community was harassed in the name of protecting law and order or fighting terrorism.

On a day-long visit to Chakur, Latur, the home town of union Home Minister Shivraj Patil, Gandhi, however, said there were some “internal and external forces” working against India.

“While it is our duty to protect the unity and integrity of the country, utmost care should be exercised to ensure a certain community was not subjected to atrocities,” she asserted.

Gandhi also touched upon two important issues during her ten-minute public speech and three-minute talk at the Congress workers’ meeting: plight of the farmers and hurdles coming in the way of implementing the Women’s Reservation Bill. She asked the Centre and state government to take immediate steps to reach out to anguished farmers driven to death, arguing it was not enough to draw an action plan and promise packages.

During her interaction with Congress workers earlier, she candidly said there was a loud protest from allies like Lalu Prasad Yadav (RJD), Mulayam Singh Yadav (Samajwadi Party) and some Congress leaders against the reservation bill.  “I will try to persuade the allies, but the time has come for you to fight for the women’s bill,” she told the workers.

Gandhi’s tour, according to the party leadership, was aimed to make the workers confident and direct the government to set things right at the administrative level.

The Congress president’s clear message to her party and the state government on discrimination against Muslims comes at a time when some minorities in the state have complained about harassment at the hands of law and order enforcing agencies.

Gandhi’s blunt talk ahead of the local bodies elections is being seen in the Congress as a big step to pacify the minorities, who constitute a sizeable, committed traditional Congress vote bank.

Interestingly, all hoardings across the region prominently displayed Sonia Gandhi’s son Rahul —  but he was not present. But several Congress leaders including revenue minister Narayan Rane, AICC general secretary Margaret Alva and state unit chief Prabha Rau attended the rally.

Chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, too, assured his government’s commitment to farmers issues.