Rahul Gandhi to visit Azamgarh, interact with students of Shibli National College

Rahul Gandhi, member of the Lok Sabha and Congress general secretary, will visit Azamgarh, in eastern Uttar Pradesh, to interact with the students of Shibli National College there.

Photo: Rahul Gandhi at St. Stephen's College, New Delhi

Congress leader Digvijay Singh had recently visited Azamgarh – which has been termed as a “nursery of terror” – to meet the families of the people arrested in connection with terrorist cases.

Singh visited Azamgarh a week ago in what he describe as an attempt to “lend a sympathetic ear” to the families of the young men who have been arrested in cases connected to terrorism.

He said that around 30 families in and around Azamgarh had been adversely affected by the terror-related cases, and that a majority of the young men charged in these terror are alumni of Shibli National College.

Shibli National College is considered as the second biggest Muslim educational institution in India, after Aligarh Muslim University.

Digvijay Singh, the AICC office-bearer in charge of Uttar Pradesh, had met Congress president Sonia Gandhi, along with Congress leaders from Uttar Pradesh, and handed over a report on his trip to Azamgarh.

After his meeting with Sonia Gandhi, Digvijay Singh, former chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, had repeated his demand to set up a special court to try the terror-related cases.

Digvijay Singh also announced that Rahul Gandhi will visit the Shibli National College, which is 124 years old, and interact with the students there.

The dates of Rahul Gandhi’s proposed visit to Azamgarh have not yet been finalised.

Singh said Sonia Gandhi had assured the Congress leaders from Uttar Pradesh that she will request the Central Government to decide soon on their demand to set up a special court to try the terror-related cases.

Digvijay Singh recalled the contributions made by Azamgarh to the country’s freedom struggle and stressed the “glorious history” of Shibli National College. Motilal Nehru, Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru had been associated with Shibli National College, Singh added.

Singh has indicated the Congress party’s intention to keep associated with Azamgarh, notwithstanding the Ulema Council and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad criticising him strongly for his visit to Azamgarh.

Rahul Gandhi’s planned visit to Azamgarh could be used by the BJP as a weapon against the Congress. The BJP has already criticised Digvijay Singh, alleging that he is giving “respectability” to terrorism.

The BJP has pointed to the fact that Digvijay Singh met the family of many people suspected to have taken part in terrorist activities, including Shazad Alam, whom the anti-terrorism of Uttar Pradesh recently arrested in connection with the Delhi blasts in 2008 and the Batla House encounter that followed the blasts.

It may be noted that the move by the Congress party to take a strong stand on issues such as Azamgarh as well as the Batla House encounter comes prior to the party preparing for the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections to be held in 2012. The Congress, which plans to contest in the Assembly elections on its own, is apparently attempting to make use of the signs of the voters of the minority community supporting it.

The Congress had won 21 seats in Uttar Pradesh in the last Lok Sabha elections.