Rahul to accompany Sonia to UNGA session

New Delhi, Sep 28 (UNI) New AICC General Secretary Rahul Gandhi will accompany Congress president Sonia Gandhi to New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session on October 2 when Mahatma Gandhi's birthday will be formally declared as "International Day of Peace and Non-Violence".

Ms Gandhi and Mr Gandhi will leave here separately and will join the Indian delegation led by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee in New York.

Party sources said here today that Ms Gandhi would leave on Sunday, while Mr Gandhi will leave the next day.

Though Mr Gandhi had attended the UNGA session last year as a member of the Indian Parliamentary delegation headed by BJP leader Sushma Swaraj, he would have a special focus this time in view of his new role as AICC General Secretary and also that he accompanies Ms Gandhi.

There are reports that Ms Gandhi might meet US President George Bush, but it is not clear if Mr Gandhi would accompany his mother to the meeting.

As the Presidential election is round the corner in the US, Ms Gandhi may not meet any other political leader.

Mr Gandhi's trip to the US to attend the UNGA session is the first foreign assignment after he took over as the General Secretary in charge of Youth Congress and the NSUI.

The UNGA had adopted a resolution, moved by Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma three months ago, declaring October 2 as International Day of Peace and Non-violence.

The resolution, backed by more than 100 countries, was the culmination of a Conference held here under the aegis of the Congress Party to celebrate the centenary of the launching of Satyagraha movement by Mahatma Gandhi in South Africa.

UNI