Congress opens its door to young leaders in UP

Lucknow: Student leaders who are active in campus politics will now be welcomed with open arms in the Congress in UP.

The Congress is using the Gujarat model where youth leaders like Hardik Patel, Alpesh Thakur and Jignesh Mavani made their mark in the Assembly elections and played a role in reducing the BJP’s numbers.

The party has already started the exercise of identifying youth politicians and bringing them into the party fold.

Shahnawaz Alam of Rihai Manch, a group of social activists, political activist Anil Yadav along with leaders of fringe groups, including Laxman Prasad, Sudhansu Bajpai and Shrawan Sahu, joined the Congress two days ago.

Shahnawaz Alam and Anil Yadav had started their political innings from Allahabad University.

These leaders may not be recognised political leaders, but they are known for being active on various issues related to dalits and the downtrodden.

These young leaders had met Congress president Rahul Gandhi in Delhi last month and had expressed their desire to fight against communal forces.

“We chose the Congress to start our political career because the Congress has a history of fighting against divisive forces and remaining secular to the core. Parties like BSP are fixated to one caste while the Samajwadi Party does not have a history of political movements,” said Shahnawaz Alam.

UPCC president Raj Babbar said that the Congress president wanted the youth to join the party and infuse new energy into the party. He said that more young leaders would be joining the party in the coming days.