As a first during the poll season, the Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee (BPCC) has invited the media to cover the first-ever poll rally of party vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday through a voicemail. The Congress leader is expected to address a rally at Aurangabad on Tuesday.
In this era of social media, the BPCC has evidently surprised the scribes of the State through its voicemail invitation. The other parties in are at best sending a text message to cover their leaders’ programme or rallies.
Inviting the mediapersons, the State Congress chief Ashok Chaudhury has sent an email with a text saying that ‘please find the attachment enclosed herewith of BPCC president’s voice message to invite you for the rally of Shri Rahul Gandhiji at Aurangabad. Kindly attend and cover the event’.
Once the attachment file was opened the BPCC president’s voice comes up greeting the journalists with namaskar. “Priye patrakar sathiyon namaskar, main Ashok Chaudhury Bihar Congress adhyaksha hun…Congress upadhyakshya Shri Rahul Gandhi April 1 ko Aurangabad ke Gandhi Maidan mein 3 baje ek jan sabha ko sambodhit kerenge…main aapko is jansabha ke liye ammantrit karta hun,” said Ashok Chaudhury in his 32-second voice message.
He has also added that for any more information in this regard the mediapersons should log on to www.inc.in. With a Jai Hind note his voice mail message ends.
The local journalists, however, are surprised lot with the voice mail message. Some even took dig at it saying that a party that has completely wiped out from the poll scene except on two seats now has become first to use technology for inviting scribes.
“It sounds very uncommon as we’re not used to it…in the name of technology the Bihar Congress, in fact, has made fun of itself as we all know how fast our network works here in the State”, quipped a local journalist who works for a leading Hindi daily.
The party source said that Congress president Sonia Gandhi is also scheduled to come at Sasaram to address a public rally on Thursday.“Even the Congress vice-president has realised that his party is contesting for only two seats in Bihar: one at Sasaram and one at Aurangabad,” said one of them.
Under poll alliance with lalu Prasad Yadav-led RJD, the Congress party has put up candidates on 12 seats in Bihar. From Aurangabad the former Kerala Governor Nikhil Kumar is contesting against BJP candidate Shushil Kumar Singh and from Sasaram lok Sabha speaker Meira Kumar is the party candidate.
However, despite being an electoral ally the RJD chief lalu Prasad would not be sharing the dais with either Rahul Gandhi or Sonia Gandhi. When asked he told media persons that “both are welcome to address public rallies in support of their party candidates but I am capable of wiping out the Opposition on my own.”
Though, the buzz is that the Congress vice-president was not in favour of sharing the dais with any convicted pilitician. The RJD chief was recently convicted in a fodder-scam case and sent to Ranchi jail.
Interestingly, it was only after meeting and getting approval from lalu Prasad, the Congress candidate Nikhil Kumar has resigned from the post of Kerala Governor and filed his nomination papers. The Sasaram candidate Meira Kumar has also reportedly discussed the matter with lalu Prasad over the phone before filing her naomination.
“They both need lalu’s support to sail through in their constituencies but the top party leaders, surprisingly, have made him untouchable during the poll campaign,” informed a poll observer.