Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh:
In this political season, it is the competition of beverages. With BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi luring people with free tea at his '
Chai pe Charcha' (discussion over tea) stalls, the Gorakhpur unit of the Congress in Uttar Pradesh has come up with its own counter drink - 'Rahul Milk'.
Packaged in plastic glasses with a picture of Mr Gandhi on them, 'Rahul Milk' is being served at booths in 19 blocks of the district, says Sayed Jamal of the Gorakhpur Congress.
Every such booth, which will serve 50 litres of milk, also has an accompanying slogan. "
Zehreele chai nahi, meetha doodh pilayenge, desh ke naujawano ko pehelwan banayenge (Instead of poisonous tea, we will serve sweet milk to make the youth of the country healthier)."
But the effort lacks consistency and fails to live up to the hype. Locals have dismissed it as a one-off event that took place three days ago and hasn't happened since.
It also lacks sanction from the state Congress leadership.
Unlike the
Chai pe Charcha campaign that gives people a chance to question Mr Modi, there is no such interaction with Mr Gandhi.
Last week, Mr Modi sat at a tea stall in western Ahmedabad and engaged with people at tea stalls across the country. Giant TV screens relayed the interaction live at a 1000 tea stalls in 300 cities.
'
Chai pe Charcha' highlights that Mr Modi sold tea on trains as a young boy and is positioned as a giant snub to political rivals like the Congress' Mani Shankar Aiyar, who have made snide remarks about the Gujarat Chief Minister's modest origins.