REPORT

People Ready For Change in UP : Azad

The Congress is the only party which is above communalism, casteism and totally and absolutely dedicated to the welfare of the poor, needy and downtrodden people of society, said the AICC general secretary, Mr. Ghulam Nabi Azad. He added that the Parivartan Yatra was to educate and prepare the people and Congress workers of Uttar Pradesh in their fight against the misrule perpetrated by the BJP government in the State. Following are the excerpts of the interview given to Congress Sandesh :

Q : What is the aim of the Parivartan Yatras and what was the outcome?

A : The basic concept of the Parivartan Yatra is multifold and this is going to be in four phases. The first phase is over and the second phase started a week back (8th November) and will be immediately followed by the third & fourth phases. Firstly, the purpose of the Yatra was to prepare the people of the state to change the BJP government at UP, secondly to bring a change in the mind and the hearts of the people by fighting against both communalism and casteism, thirdly to make the people of Uttar Pradesh understand that the Congress is the only party which is above communalism and casteism and which is totally and absolutely dedicated to the welfare of the poor, needy and the downtrodden people of society.

During this Parivartan Yatra, with the total encouragement and backing of the Congress president Smt. Sonia Gandhi, I and my friends who toured the entire state were more than satisfied with the objectives of the Parivartan Yatra.

Q : What was the response of the public?

A : The response was overwhelming and unexpected which compelled me to say on number of occasions that it looked as if the people of the state were ready for Parivartan and it was rather we who were lagging behind. I thought I had come to wake up the people but to my surprise I realised that the people were already awake and it was rather we who were in a slumber. This I had to say after seeing the mass participation and enthusiasm of the public. One of the glaring example of public enthusiasm was that almost 90% of the public meetings, which were supposed to be concluded between 6 to 7 pm went late into night till 1.30 to 2.30 am.

Q : Have the PCCs and DCCs done their job well for this rally?

A : The DCCs and block Congress committees did excellent job and participation of the organisation was total and absolute.

Q : Will this Parivartan Yatra favour Congress in the coming elections?

A : After the first phase was through the Congress president, Mrs. Sonia Gandhi, addressed three massive public meeting in Uttar Pradesh – at Lucknow, Meerut and Basti – and all the three meetings were the biggest in comparison to any political party in the recent past. The public participation in these meetings and the inspiring speeches of the Congress president have further encouraged and emboldened the Congressmen in the state to fight against communalism, casteism, nepotism and corruption with more gusto and vigour.

I am sure the results of the Assembly elections in the state will be encouraging, satisfactory and a surprise for the Congress opponents. In conclusion, the credit for making the Parivartan Yatra a big success goes to the lakhs and lakhs of Congress workers who never asked for favour or reward in return.