Rahul Gandhi’s tour in Orissa, termed ‘Discover India’ by the Opposition, turned out to be a mystery. He gave a slip to the state security and visited remote tribal villages in Koraput and Ganjam districts.
The ruling Biju Janata Dal-BJP termed the act as a violation of security rules. The government has even shot off a letter to the Centre questioning the propriety of the VIP’s behaviour. “The state has the overall security responsibility of visiting VIPs. But, Gandhi visited some of the places without informing the state police,” said a senior home department official.
Commenting on poverty in the state, Rahul said, “Orissa is rich, not you”. He expressed displeasure over Vedanta alumina project for destroying the forest and displacing the tribals. But, his favouring party democracy caused a big ripple in political circles, particularly in the Congress, which depends heavily on the Nehru-Gandhi family.
Rahul’s visit was a mystery in the sense he didn’t meet party functionaries. He ignored party MLAs in the constituencies he visited. The tour was planned in a way that only the AICC general secretary in-charge of Orissa, Ajay Maken, and Youth Congress leaders were seen with him. His meeting leaders of various tribal communities like Paraja, Gadba, Kandh at the Damanjodi guest house proved that the entire itinerary was planned well in advance. However, his meeting tribal people seems to have gone down well.