UP Polls 2022: First time in 30 years, Congress is fighting on all 403 seats, says Priyanka Gandhi

`We are raising issues that pertain to the public and issues that are actually hurting the public,` said Priyanka Gandhi

New Delhi: The UP Assembly Polls 2022 is just days away, and the political parties are gearing up for the final battle. For the Congress party, this election has a special significance. While Congress hasn't been in power in UP for decades, this is the first time in 30 years that the party is contesting in all 403 seats. 

Talking about it, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, "We are fighting with all our might. It's the first time in 30 years that our party has fought on all 403 seats. We are raising issues that pertain to the public and issues that are actually hurting the public."

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Friday (February 4) also held a roadshow in Sahibabad, Ghaziabad. Sangeeta Tyagi, the wife of late Congress leader Rajiv Tyagi, who died in August 2020 following a cardiac arrest, is a Congress candidate from the area.

Meanwhile, on Thursday (February 3), Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, while in Bulandshahar, sought the support of the people for her party nominees in the coming assembly elections and stressed that elections should be fought on the issue of development and not caste or religion.

Priyanka Gandhi also met the family members of a woman who was shot dead in a village there. Her family alleged that she was also raped before being killed and they were forced to cremate her in a hurry. A Congress spokesperson in Lucknow said Priyanka Gandhi has assured the family of all possible help in their fight for justice.

On a door-to-door campaign in Sikandarabad, Anupshahr and Syana assembly segments of Bulandshahar district of western Uttar Pradesh, the Congress general secretary was greeted with loud cheers and slogans as she moved about on the streets with party leaders.

In Sikandarabad, she was greeted by young girls carrying placards with "ladki hoon, lad sakti hoon" written on them while flower petals were showered on her from the rooftops while some locals clicked pictures and shot videos on their mobile phones.

Priyanka Gandhi interacted with the people and enquired about their problems. She also distributed her party's manifesto, especially to women, and urged them to read it. The Congress is contesting the assembly elections with the focus on women-related issues.

In an informal chat with newspersons, the Congress leader, who is leading the party's campaign to revive the party in the state, said, "Elections should be fought on the issue of development, not caste or religion. People here are also saying the same thing. People want to know (from the BJP) about the development work they have done, arrangements for employment or education or health. These must be the issues of the election," she said.

"The BJP and Samajwadi Party are not talking about the real issues of the people in the election. They are busy giving statements. Congress on the other hand talks about the real issues of the people. This is why we will have the support of the general public," she added.