New Delhi, Sep 25 (IANS): Congress leader and member of the Screening Committee for UP Assembly polls and Rajya Sabha MP Deepender Hooda was at 10 Janpath on Saturday where he met party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.

However, not all members of the screening committee were present in this meeting.

Priyanka Gandhi's proposed UP tour also came up for discussion in this meeting, which lasted for about an hour.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi on September 17 had constituted a screening committee for the UP assembly elections to select candidates and prepare the election strategy.

Jitendra Singh has been made the chairman of the committee. While Deepender Hooda and Varsha Gaikwad have been nominated as members.

According to the party, soon the Screening Committee will make a list of the panel of candidates after a multiple level process.

However, it has been said that about 60 leaders have already been given the green signal by the Congress party to enter the electoral fray. On the instructions of the general secretary in-charge of UP, Priyanka Gandhi, the national secretary of the party is taking a decision on the candidates keeping in view the ground reality. If this happens, it will be the first time in the Congress party that candidates will be decided without a screening committee.

Priyanka Gandhi's Pratigya Maharally was proposed in Meerut on September 29, which has been postponed. According to sources, the date of the program has now been shifted to October 9 due to Pitru Paksha (inauspicious period). Now Priyanka Gandhi will start her election campaign by holding a 'Pratigya Maharally' in Varanasi on October 9. The party has planned 12,000 km journey criss-crossing the entire state to connect to the masses. The party will hold rally in Agra on October 7, in Prayagraj on October 16, in Kanpur on October 23.