NOVEMBER 01, 2011 By Girish Kumar Dubey
India's federal ruling Congress party's General Secretary Rahul Gandhi paid a surprise visit to the holy shrine of Guru Ravidas Maharaj at the Hindu holy city of Varanasi in India's northern Uttar Pradesh state on Tuesday (November 01).
Gandhi paid a surprised visit to the holy shrine earlier in the day, which sent the local people, and the pilgrims gathered there into frenzy.
The Congress party leader met the religious leaders of the temple and listened to the religious discourses given out, after which he had food at the community kitchen of the temple.
"He had come to seek blessings at the temple of Guru Ravidasji Maharaj here. He prostrated in front of Guruji's idol and then he listened to the religious discourses, which were being delivered at that time. Then he had food at the community kitchen for about ten minutes. Then he gave out autographs to the people at the guesthouse. Then he told the people that he would serve to the most through the medium of politics," said Pramod Kumar, a local man.
The Ravidas Maharaj temple is one of the most revered shrines for the people of the lower castes from the Hindu and Sikh religion in north India.
Many pilgrims who had come in from the northern state of Punjab also saw Gandhi coming in suddenly to pay homage to the saint's shrine.
"There were many people present there who have come over from Punjab. Nobody knew as to who was coming and going. Then he came up all of a sudden," said Satvinder Singh, a pilgrim from Punjab.
Political speculations are high that Gandhi's visit is to target sympathies from the lower caste sections of north India by visiting the shrines of one of their traditional patron saints.
Also some see it as a direct challenge to Uttar Pradesh's Chief Minister Maywati's hold over the lower caste sections in the state for the coming state elections.
The polls to the legislature of Uttar Pradesh, scheduled in the early part of 2012, are seen as an opportunity for the Congress party to re-establish a firm political base in the country's fifth largest and most populous state, before the 2014 general elections to the federal parliament.
Rahul Gandhi is determined to give a tough fight to the ruling Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in the Uttar Pradesh provincial polls.
His visits to various parts of state have been focused equally on the lower caste Dalits, Muslims, socially backward classes and marginalised Hindus.
India's federal ruling Congress party's General Secretary Rahul Gandhi pays a surprise visit to the holy shrine of Guru Ravidas Maharaj at the Hindu holy city of Varanasi in India's northern Uttar Pradesh state.
PLEASE NOTE: THIS EDIT CONTAINS CONVERTED 4:3 MATERIAL
VARANASI, UTTAR PRADESH, INDIA (NOVEMBER 01, 2011) (ORIGINALLY 4:3) (ANI-NO ACCESS BBC)
1. ENTRANCE DOOR OF THE TEMPLE OF SRI GURU RAVIDAS TEMPLE
2. LETTERS ON TOP OF THE ENTRANCE DOOR IN HINDI READING 'SRI GURU RAVIDAS TEMPLE'
3. RAHUL GANDHI, LAWMAKER AND GENERAL SECRETARY OF INDIA'S FEDERAL 4. RULING CONGRESS PARTY, MEETING WITH RELIGIOUS LEADERS OF THE TEMPLE
5. THE RELIGIOUS LEADERS FELICITATING GANHI WITH A PIECE OF CLOTH
6. (SOUNDBITE) (Hindi) PRAMOD KUMAR, A LOCAL PERSON, SAYING:
"He had come to seek blessings at the temple of Guru Ravidasji Maharaj here. He prostrated in front of Guruji's idol and then he listened to the religious discourses, which were being delivered at that time. Then he had food at the community kitchen for about ten minutes. Then he gave out autographs to the people at the guesthouse. Then he told the people that he would serve to the most through the medium of politics."
7. GANDHI WRITING DOWN HIS SIGNATURE AT A BOOK IN THE TEMPLE
8. A GHROUP OF PEOPLE SEATED
9. GANDHI STANDIGN WITH TWO RELIGIOUS BOOKS FROM THE TEMPLE
10. THE IDOL OF SRI GURU RAVIDAS MAHARAJ
11. GANDHI HAVING A MEAL FROM THE TEMPLE'S COMMUNITY KITCHEN ALONG WITH OTHER PEOPLE
12. (SOUNDBITE) (Hindi) SATVINDER SINGH, A PILGRIM FROM NORTHERN PUNJAB STATE, SAYING:
"There were many people present there who have come over from Punjab. Nobody knew as to who was coming and going. Then he came up all of a sudden."
13. GANDHI COMING OUT OF THE TEMPLE WITH OTHER PEOPLE
14. GANDHI GETTING INTO HIS CAR
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