30 yrs on, Indira still holds power to pull crowd

Lucknow: Thirty-three years after her assassination, former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi still retains the power to captivate people.

In an auditorium brimming over with Congressmen of all ages and statures, there was pin-drop silence on Wednesday as speakers talked about her persona.

The seminar, the first in the series to commemorate her birth centenary in Uttar Pradesh, Indira Gandhi came alive among the members of the party that she held command over.

As the LED van outside telecast documentaries on the late leader, keeping Congressmen glued to the screen, inside the auditorium, party workers listened with rapt attention as speakers threw light on the various facets of her personality. Speakers at the programme spoke on the impact of the former PM’s decisions in Indian politics, her role in shaping the country, and even her controversial decisions, including the Blue Star operation.

The massive turnout at the seminar left Congressmen in an upbeat mood. “This shows the Congress still has fire inside,” said UPCC president Raj Babbar.

He said the basic idea of the seminars was to acquaint the young generations with Indira Gandhi’s contribution towards national building.

“Mrs Gandhi is all the more relevant in the prevailing situation of the day because she was strongly secular. She had a vision for India which is missing in most leaders today,” he said.

The Congress is organising a series of seminars in cities across UP to mark the birth centenary of late Indira Gandhi.

The party is also making a conscious effort to counter the anti-Emergency propaganda that has been unleashed against the Congress and Indira Gandhi through the recent spate of films on the subject.

The final event will be held in Allahabad, which is the birthplace of late Indira Gandhi, on November 17, and members of the Gandhi family are likely to participate in the programme.