Leaders out-number crowd in Congress meet

Hyderabad, Feb 9 (INN): The minorities in the State appear to be distancing themselves with the Congress party.

If the response to the meeting organised by the Congress leaders on Sunday is an indication, then the ruling party is losing its base in the State. The much-publicised meeting titled "Achievements of UPA Government and The Future of Minorities" held at Lalilat Kala Thoranam here got utterly poor response from the people. At one stage, the number of leaders sitting on the dais out-numbered the people sitting in the crowd. Except for a few seats in the VIP gallery and those occupied by media personnel, almost all the chairs were empty and were staring at the organisers.

To be on safe side, the Congress leaders did not organise the meeting on party's banner. Instead, the All India Minorities Forum (AIMF) banner was used for the meeting although all the leaders who were invited for the meeting belonged to Congress party. Probably due to poor attendance, the meeting started three hours behind the scheduled time.

The organisers in their invitation card had printed the names of over two dozen high-profile leaders who were likely to participate in the programme. They included four Chief Ministers - N Kiran Kumar Reddy (AP), Dr Mukul Sangma (Meghalay), Harish Rawat (Uttarakhand) and Siddiramaiah (Karnataka), over half-a-dozen Union Ministers including Oscar Fernandez, S Jaipal Reddy, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Srikanth Jena, Sarve Satyanarayana, JD Seelam, Balram Naik, Panabaka Lakshmi and other top leaders including AICC General Seceretary Digvijay Singh. However, except for Union Minister for Minority Affairs K Rahman Khan, no other top leader participated in the meeting. But over 50 Congress leaders from the State were present on the dais.

Interestingly, APCC president Botsa Satyanarayana skipped the meeting, while Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Pramod Tiwari participated in the same.

Sources say that the meeting was originally planned at Nizam College Grounds. Later, the venue was shifted to LB Stadium and finally, it was held at the Lalitha Kala Thoranam. The timing and topic of the meeting too has puzzled some leaders. Organising a meeting on the subject of minorities' welfare looked odd to a few at a time when the State is hit political uncertainty due to Telangana issue. However, as the invitation card itself suggest, the meeting was conducted "under the guidance" of Union Minister Rahman Khan and Digvijay Singh.