Rahul Gandhi says team Congress is 'match ready', will play on 'front foot'

After chairing a meeting of Congress general secretaries and state in-charges, of which Priyanka Gandhi was also a part, party president Rahul Gandhi on his team is “match ready” for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, due in April-May, and it will play on the front foot. The meeting was convened to discuss the party's strategy for the Lok Sabha polls.

Congress President Rahul Gandhi. PTI Photo

NEW DELHI: After chairing a meeting of Congress general secretaries and state in-charges, of which Priyanka Gandhi was also a part, party president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said his team is “match ready” for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, due in April-May, and it will play on the front foot. The meeting was convened to discuss the party's strategy for the Lok Sabha polls. "I met with our AICC General Secretaries & State In Charges at the AICC HQ this evening. Our discussions covered a wide range of subjects. The team is match ready and we will play on the front foot..," Gandhi tweeted sharing pictures of the meeting. According to sources the party's overall strategy for the Lok Sabha polls and booth-level organisation were discussed during the meet. Later, responding to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's counter attack on the Congress on the controversial Rafale deal during a speech in Lok Sabha, Gandhi reiterated his old stand and accused Modi of corruption in the India's purchase of 36 fighter jets from France. "The Prime Minister has helped steal 30,000 crore from the defence forces and handed that money to Anil Ambani. He has done it personally," Gandhi told the media. The spotlight at the meeting was on Priyanka Gandhi, who took charge as AICC general secretary in-charge of the party's affairs in Uttar Pradesh East on Wednesday, as she arrived at the party headquarters and headed straight for the meeting. Priyanka, according to sources, has told the party leaders that she has a challenging responsibility ahead of her and she will try to meet whatever is expected of her. On her statement, Rahul Gandhi said "we are looking beyond 2019". Pariyanka was allotted a seat away from Rahul Gandhi. She was given a seat next to Jyotiraditya Scindia, General Secretary in charge of western Uttar Pradesh, in the middle of the right side row. Rahul Gandhi, K.C. Venugopal, Ghulam Nabi Azad and Mallikarjun Kharge were seated on the front. Political observers say Priyanka was deliberately not seated next to Rahul but away from him to give a message to senior party leaders that as the All India Congress Committee (AICC) Secretaries, they are as important as Priyanka Gandhi who is also a General Secretary.