Belagavi, Jan 17
Congress' Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala said on Friday that party leaders Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Mallikarjun Kharge will visit Belagavi on January 21 to take part in 'Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim, Jai Samvidhan' convention.

He gave the information while speaking to reporters after landing in Belagavi to attend a preliminary meeting of the 'Gandhi Bharat' event.

The Congress is organising the 'Gandhi Bharat' event to commemorate the 100 years of Mahatma Gandhi taking over as the AICC President. The event was deferred following the death of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

"On January 21, we will hold the 'Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim, Jai Samvidhan' convention in Belagavi. The national leaders of the Congress including Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge and Priyanka Gandhi will attend the event. The programme is rescheduled," he stated.

Hitting out at the BJP, Surjewala said: "Union Home Minister Amit Shah has not only insulted B. R. Ambedkar in Parliament but also ridiculed those who follow the ideology of Ambedkar."

The ideologies of Mahatma Gandhi and Ambedkar need to be implemented and in this background the convention is organised in Belagavi.

The programme will also be held at the birthplace of Ambedkar on January 27 in Madhya Pradesh, he announced.

"Today, the rights of the poor and the women are robbed away systematically. Against this backdrop, we are raising our voices from the Belagavi convention. A new direction and new policy will evolve and commence from Belagavi," Surjewala said.

"In 1924, during the Belagavi Congress session, Mahatma Gandhi presided over the event. Karnataka leaders Gangadhar Deshpande and former PM late Jawaharlal Nehru, then Congress General Secretaries, organised that session in Belagavi on 80-acre ground. Now, we are conducting the working committee meeting in the same location," he said.

Rahul, Priyanka to attend 'Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim, Jai Samvidhan' convention in K'taka: Surjewala