Sonia Gandhi likely to campaign in Gujarat's tribal belt

AHMEDABAD: Congress president Sonia Gandhi is likely to campaign for her party next week as electioneering reaches a fever pitch in Gujarat. A two-day campaign schedule is being worked out for 70-year-old Gandhi, who has not canvassed for her party recently due to health reasons.

Congress insiders said that Gandhi would hold four rallies, two each on each day in tribaldominated seats. A senior Gujarat Congress leader told ET: “She gets a tremendous response in tribaldominated areas across states.

So we are framing the schedule so that we have three of the four meetings in reserved ST seats and one meeting in an urban centre. These would be assembly segments that may be seeing a relatively close contest. We expect her show to tilt the scales in favour of the Congress” in such seats.

Gandhi was forced to return from Himachal Pradesh last month without campaigning in the run-up to the crucial assembly elections, after complaining of stomach ache. She has restricted her public engagements largely because of health concerns and has passed on the baton to son Rahul Gandhi who is driving the Gujarat campaign.

The party president, however, is unlikely to give the state a miss. “She strikes a chord with tribals as she is seen as instrumental in pushing the UPA government to pass the Forest Rights Act.

That the state government has not been able to facilitate distribution of land pattas in several areas is a sore point with tribals,” a Congress leader said.

Gujarat has 27 constituencies reserved for Scheduled Tribes and Congress represent 16 of them. JDU rebel Chhotubhai Vasava represents a seat and BJP the remaining 10. Congress has been trying to keep ST votes, its traditional vote bank, intact to win a few more seats.