Rahul Gandhi's Mahayatra: No Big Rallies or Long Speeches

No big rallies, no lengthy speeches, more one-on-ones, interactions with small groups, meetings with youth and women and farmers: This is what election strategist Prashant Kishor has prescribed for Rahul Gandhi's mahayatra in Uttar Pradesh.

The Congress Vice President will hit the road on September 6 at Deoria in the east and travel through 39 districts of the state, covering 2,500 km in the nearly month-long exercise. The focus groups, according to Kishor's strategy, are women, Brahmins and farmers.

Last time during the Lok Sabha polls, Rahul had addressed several rallies, and though he worked aggressively, the performance of his party was not bright. After stock-taking exercises and several surveys the party felt that Rahul's strength lay not in oratory but in informal smaller interactions.

And this is what the Congress Vice President will do. But he is also likely to stay in the state for over long periods rather than dashing in and out of Delhi.

Rahul is reaching Amethi on Wednesday for a three-day visit to his Amethi parliamentary constituency. "Will be in Amethi from 31st Aug-2nd Sept. Looking forward to meeting everyone!," he tweeted.

The next day, he is scheduled to meet people at Munshiganj guest house and address a public meeting in Jafarganj in Jagdishpur Assembly constituency. On September 2, he will attend a meeting of district vigilance and monitoring committee before returning to Delhi.