Overview
- Rahul Gandhi and senior Congress leaders paid floral tributes at party headquarters on October 24 to mark Sitaram Kesri’s 25th death anniversary.
- It was the first formal commemoration for the former party president at 24 Akbar Road since his death in 2000 after years without HQ observances.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP accused Congress of election-time opportunism, reviving allegations that Kesri was humiliated during his 1998 removal.
- The tribute comes days before Bihar’s November 6 and 11 assembly polls, with both parties invoking Kesri’s OBC legacy in their voter outreach.
- ThePrint reported that Rahul Gandhi met Kesri’s family and asked K. C. Venugopal to stay in touch, even as reactions within Congress ranged from praise to charges of hypocrisy.