To counter the BJP’s move to highlight the Kanth issue by holding demonstration in Moradabad on July 26, Uttar Pradesh Congress also announced to hold a ‘ peace march’ in Kanth on the same day to oppose the BJP’s effort.
BJP on Wednesday has already announced to hold a march to Kanth Police station to register an FIR against SSP of Moradabad for atrocities on the arrested BJP activists.
UP Congress president Nirmal Khatri, in his first press conference after the lok Sabha elections, here on Thursday afternoon announced that several party leaders would join a peace march in Kanth on the ideologies of Mahatma Gandhi. “ Our march would be a peaceful one to counter the effort of the BJP to trigger communal violence in the state for political purpose like they did in Muzaffarnagar,” Khatri told reporters here. Khatri blamed that the UP government has failed to control law and order in the state and they are unable to deal with the BJP, which is trying to communalise the society.
The party state president also announced several programmes of the state party unit including holding of district headquarter level ‘peace march’ on August 9 to make the people aware about Mahatma Gandhi’s ideology. Similarly on July 24, party leaders will hold dharna at all the district headquarters demanding compensation to the farmers on the drought situation in the state. The party has demanded that the farmers should be given Rs 5000 per bigha compensation. Khatri said that the party would now concentrate on the organisational polls as the membership drive would end on December 31 next.
UP Congress is likely to set a target for enrolling around 10 million membership of the party. In the last organizational elections, the party had enrolled 6 million members. “ I will personally visit all the divisional headquarters next month to monitor the membership drive and even organise camps to give an impetus to the process and to enroll genuine members,” he said while announcing that the names of the district president would be announced by the month end. Presently all the district, city and state units have been dissolved by the party high command after the lok Sabha debacle. The AICC Secretaries are visiting all the districts in the state to nominate the district and city presidents. The UP Congress president said that between August 9 to 15, Congress workers will hold essay competitions in all the schools and colleges on the ideology of Mahatma Gandhi.