Rahul Gandhi Vows To "Protect" AP Farmers From NDA

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Friday declared that his party would come to the rescue of the farmers in the hour of their crisis.

Gandhi went on a 10km-long padayatra in Andhra Pradesh beginning from the village where Indira Gandhi had addressed a meeting in 1979.

He consoled the families of the distressed farmers who had committed suicide due to financial difficulties, thereby highlighting the issues faced by the farmers and women Self-Help Groups.

He also handed over Rs 50,000 to the families of each of the 47 deceased farmers.

Exhorting the farmers to be courageous, the Congress leader alleged that the present BJP government was trying to reverse the pro-poor and pro-farmer policies of the previous UPA government.

Stating that the Congress party would relentlessly fight for the upliftment of the farmers, Gandhi said that his party would prevent the attempts of the BJP government from forcibly taking over their lands.

Recalling that the previous Congress-led UPA government at the Centre had brought about an act to prevent the acquisition of lands without the consent of the farmers, the Congress vice-president alleged that the present NDA regime had enacted its own Land Acquisition Act with an intention to benefit affluent industrialists.

"If the present regime dares to snatch an inch of land from the farmers without their consent, the farmers will show their power to Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he warned.

While the UPA government had promised special status to the residuary Andhra Pradesh and support for the Polavaram project, the NDA government was attempting to deprive AP of the special status and the required funds for the Polavaram project, he alleged.

Asking AP Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu directly why he was not fighting for special status for Andhra Pradesh, Gandhi said that he had inherited late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's ideals and spirit, and would fight for the achievement of these promises successfully.

Gandhi, who had reached out to farmers in other states during similar visits and foot marches in Punjab, Maharashtra, Telangana and more recently Rajasthan, kicked off his padayatra from the Obuladevara Cheruvu village and proceeded to Mamilakuntapalli, a 3-km stretch, across which he had an interaction with farmers, weavers and students.

Later, the Congress Vice-President will go to Puttaparthy and visit the "Maha Samadhi" of Satya Sai Baba, and also receive representations from the people, besides holding an interaction with senior Congress leaders.

Rahul Gandhi's first after the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh is being seen as an effort to strengthen the party's base in the State after it drew a thunderous blank in the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections held in 2014. (NSS)