Priyanka Gandhi Suggests Setting Up "War Rooms" For 2022 UP Assembly Polls

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra today envisaged setting up “war rooms” right up to the district levels to receive feedback from the ground and take prompt decisions on emergent issues ahead of the 2022 UP Assembly polls.

Priyanka Gandhi suggested the idea while deliberating upon various strategies for the party to adopt in preparation for the upcoming state Assembly polls during a meeting with the party's state unit leaders. The other issues that she discussed included the route of the party's ‘Pratigya Yatra', setting up training camps for booth management and party units at the village level, party leaders said.

"At the meeting with party leaders at her residence, Priyanka Ji also discussed the route for the party's proposed ‘Pratigya Yatra'. Training camps, setting up of war rooms and party's Gram Sabha units were also deliberated upon," UP Congress chief Ajay Kumar Lallu told reporters.

She also deliberated upon various local and national issues on which the assembly elections may be fought, he said, adding the selection of candidates and the application process for them too were discussed.

"We are preparing to fight on all the 403 Assembly seats in the state under the leadership of Priyanka Ji. We will form the government in the state," Mr Lallu said.

About the proposed “war rooms”, the party leaders said they will be set up right up to the district levels to keep an eye on the area and will be manned by a spokesperson and some senior leaders of the area to take prompt decisions on any emergent issue.

The party leaders also discussed the booth management strategy which is considered important for the polls, they added.

Congress Legislative party leader Aradhana Mishra said, "Priyanka Ji will be here for five days during which she would be holding party meetings at her residence-cum-office in Lucknow".

On her plans of visiting Raebareli, Ms Mishra said, "Raebareli is her home. She can go there whenever she wants."

Priyanka Gandhi arrived in Lucknow on Monday on a five-day visit to review and discuss the party's preparedness for the next year's state Assembly polls. This is her second visit to the state this month.

Earlier on September 13, she had visited UP for five days during which she had exhorted party workers to work round-the-clock for the upcoming elections.

The Congress party had fought the 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls in alliance with the Samajwadi Party. The grand old party had managed to win just seven of the 114 seats it had contested with a vote share of 6.25%.

This time, the Congress party has announced that it will fight the 2022 polls without aligning with any big political party.