Rahul Gandhi to visit Middle East next week

January 03, 2018 20:07

Rahul Gandhi will travel next week to the Middle East on his first foreign trip after becoming Congress president.

The trip, timed after parliament wraps on January 5 (Friday), is part of the newly-minted initiative by Gandhi's strategist Sam Pitroda, who conceived his successful Berkeley trip in September which showcased a more confident and assertive Gandhi talking to students ahead of his big Gujarat campaign.

The Berkeley event is credited with helping alter the perception of Gandhi as a temperamental politician prone to foreign holidays in between unimpressive appearances at parliament.

Sources say that the Berkeley visit established a prototype that Pitroda will use for a foreign outreach by Gandhi every four months and will see the Congress president interacting with foreign leaders and students.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also expected to travel to the UAE and Palestine early this year though the dates have not been announced yet.

In the United Arab Emirates, Gandhi will address townhall meetings and interact with global CEOs, said sources. He will talk to local businesses who employ Indians as well.

Gandhi, 48, will be accompanied by Pitroda and younger Congress leaders such as Milind Deora and Jitendra Singh.

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