Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi will lead the party’s protest against demonetisation in poll bound Gujarat on Wednesday, the first anniversary of the note ban.
Mr. Gandhi has chosen Surat where he would interact with traders, weavers and workers affected by the note ban and the GST. In the evening, he will take part in a “candle light vigil to pay homage to those who lost their lives because of demonetisation.”
Surat, known for its textile and diamond trade, is an interesting choice for the party to tap into the anger among the textile and diamond traders, who are mostly Patidars (Patels) over the GST.
In July, textile traders in the city organised massive protests against the new tax regime for close to two weeks. “The undercurrent is strongly with the Congress as people now believe that the BJP government must go,” said Bharatsinh Solanki, president of the Congress party in Gujarat.
The party has also asked all its top leaders — General Secretaries and State In-charges — to travel to prominent cities and district headquarters of States and address protest rallies with a single theme Desh Bhugat Raha Hain (India Suffers) wearing black bands.
In Delhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad and Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken will address a candle light vigil at Connaught Place.
Stepping up its online offensive, the party promoted a hashtag #DeModisaster that was among the top trends on Twitter on Tuesday.
