Rahul notches up 107 rallies, roadshows as LS polls campaign ends

In a campaign blitz to boost the Congress' chances in the Lok Sabha polls, former party president Rahul Gandhi and AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra notched up a total of 107 and 108 public outreach programmes respectively, including rallies and roadshows.

Rahul Gandhi campaigned for the Congress in Punjab on the last day of campaigning before the seventh phase of voting, while Priyanka Gandhi held a road show in Himachal Pradesh's Solan.

As curtains came down on the poll campaigning, party sources said Rahul Gandhi participated in 107 rallies, roadshows, interactions and major campaign events.

Priyanka Gandhi also ran a spirited campaign by taking part in 108 public meetings and roadshows, they said, adding that she also gave more than 100 media bytes, one TV interview and five print interviews during her marathon election campaign.

Priyanka Gandhi camped in Rae Bareli and spearheaded the party's campaign there and in adjacent Amethi for about two weeks.

While Rahul Gandhi contested from Rae Bareli, the Congress had fielded Gandhi family's close aide K L Sharma from Amethi to take on the BJP's Smriti Irani.

Political observers said Priyanka Gandhi took on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and countered his attacks on the Congress during her whirlwind campaign.

She campaigned in 16 states and one union territory. Priyanka Gandhi also addressed two conferences of thousands of workers in Amethi and Rae Bareli.

Rahul Gandhi also addressed some public meetings along with Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav in Uttar Pradesh and Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav in Bihar and sought votes for the candidates of the INDIA bloc.

How successful the campaign blitz was will only be known on June 4, when the poll results are scheduled to be declared.