Uttarakhand Congress Meeting: Kharge, Rahul Review 2027 Poll Plans

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi met senior Uttarakhand party leaders at Kharge’s residence in New Delhi on Monday, 2 November, to review preparations for the state Assembly election due in early 2027. According to PTI and ANI, former chief minister Harish Rawat was the only prominent state leader who did not attend, and no reason for his absence was given.

Kharge’s Charge Against the BJP Government

In a post on X after the meeting, written in Hindi, Kharge alleged that the BJP’s “double-engine” government in Uttarakhand had “betrayed the hopes and aspirations” of the people in its ten years in power. He cited what he called a collapsed law-and-order system, serious questions over women’s safety, “arrogance of power” and a tendency to evade accountability. He said Congress wants to give the state a “secure, sensitive and accountable” government.

AICC general secretary K C Venugopal said young people and women faced “severe injustice”, from leaked papers to what he called a mockery of justice in the Ankita Bhandari case. He predicted voters would unseat the BJP in Uttarakhand and Manipur when both go to polls early next year. These are the party’s claims; the BJP has not been quoted in the reports.

Also read Rijiju Replies to Kharge on Delimitation Bill and House Prorogation

Who Was in the Room, and Who Was Not

Besides Kharge and Gandhi, the meeting included Venugopal, Kumari Selja, the AICC general secretary in charge of Uttarakhand, state unit president Ganesh Godiyal, Yashpal Arya and Harak Singh Rawat. A separate meeting on Manipur had been held earlier the same day, ANI reported.

Harish Rawat’s absence is the detail being noticed within the party. Neither report on Monday’s meeting links his absence to any dispute, and the party has not commented on it.

No Poll Dates Yet

The Election Commission has not announced a schedule for the Uttarakhand election, and the reports do not mention any candidate list or seat-sharing plan. The meeting comes a day after the INDIA bloc rally at Ramlila Maidan, where Rahul Gandhi and Kharge pressed for the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar; IPB News reported what the leaders said. More political coverage is in Daily Updates.

Source: Based on reporting by PTI via ThePrint and ANI.

Image: Heena Fatima / ThePrint.