Sonia, Rahul rally in Nagpur to mark Ambedkar birthday celebrations

Mumbai, April 9  Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi will travel to Maharashtra and address a rally in Nagpur on Monday as part of B.R. Ambedkar's 125th birth anniversary celebrations, an official said here on Saturday.

The duo shall arrive in Nagpur and visit the historic Deekshabhoomi, where Ambedkar had embraced Buddhism along with 600,000 followers on October 14, 1956.

Later, Sonia Gandhi will address a public rally at Kasturchand Park in the city, to mark Ambedkar's 125th birth anniversary, which will be attended by Rahul Gandhi and other top central and state Congress leaders.

Rahul Gandhi will travel to Mumbai on Tuesday (April 12) to meet jewellers who have been on strike since over a month to protest the one percent hike in excise duty.

The strike by a majority of the gold jewellers fraternity has crippled the retail markets and seriously hit gold demand and imports.

Rahul Gandhi, who has already expressed his support for the jewellers, will meet their representatives at Zaveri Bazar, the industry hub in Mumbai on Tuesday, said Mumbai Congress president Sanjay Nirupam.

He will pray at the 15th century Mumbadevi temple, after whom Mumbai derived its name, and visit the Deonar dumping ground which has been the source of massive pollution in recent weeks, said Nirupam.