After a long break, Sonia Gandhi set to address rallies in Maharashtra, Haryana

NEW DELHI: After many years and several elections, Sonia Gandhi will once again campaign for the Congress in the Maharashtra and Haryana elections at a time when the electoral prowess of the Gandhi family and Congress have dwindled following serial reversals in two successive Lok Sabha elections and many state assembly polls.

After the AICC’s discussions with the state Congress leaders, there were indications that Sonia Gandhi, who returned to head the Congress after Rahul Gandhi quit the post within 19 months after taking over as party chief, may address two rallies in Haryana and three to four in Maharashtra, including at least one joint rally with NCP chief Sharad Pawar, “Soniaji will campaign in both Haryana and Maharashtra. The exact dates and venues are being worked out,” said a Congress functionary involved in the discussions.

Though her name was routinely included in the Congress’ official list of star campaigners submitted to the election commission, her failing health and keenness to hand over the stage to her son had seen reduction in her campaigning since 2014. It almost stopped after she fell ill during a campaign in Varanasi in 2017, though she was still party chief. In the Lok Sabha polls earlier this year, she addressed just one rally in Telangana. Incidentally, she made her political debut in Rohtak in 1998 as ‘chief campaigner’ of Congress.


There is also a demand from Haryana and Maharashtra Congress for general secretary Priyanka Gandhi and many party chief ministers. Though this will be the first round of polls since Rahul Gandhi quit as party chief, his name has been included among Congress star campaigners. It remains a matter of speculation whether he would return from his foreign trip before the campaign is over and if he would be in a mood to campaign.