Sonia not to attend Mahendragarh rally, Rahul to address: Haryana Congress

Congress president Sonia Gandhi, who was scheduled to address an election rally in Haryana's Mahendragarh on Friday, will not be able to attend the public meeting due to "unavoidable reasons", the state Congress unit said.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will address the public meeting at Mahendragarh in the afternoon.

The rally on the penultimate day of poll campaign end would have been Sonia Gandhi's first election campaign address after becoming interim party chief.

The public meeting is scheduled to be held at government college sports complex in Mahendragarh.

"@RahulGandhi ji will be addressing a public meeting at Mahendragarh today, at 2 PM. @INCIndia President Sonia Gandhi ji will not be able to attend the meeting due to unavoidable reasons," the Haryana Congress said in a tweet.

Rahul Gandhi has already held rallies for the October 21 assembly polls in Maharashtra and Haryana.

This will be Rahul Gandhi's second rally in Haryana. He had addressed the first one on October 14 in Nuh in the Mewat region.

"Congress president Sonia Gandhi will not be able to address the Mahendergarh rally due to unavoidable reasons. Now, Rahul ji will be addressing the rally in the afternoon in her place," Congress leader and party candidate from Mahendergarh, Rao Daan Singh, told PTI over phone.

Singh is pitted against Bharatiya Janata Party minister Ram Bilas Sharma.