Many leave rally venue as Rahul's arrival gets delayed

The rally was organised ahead of the municipal elections likely to be held next month.

New Delhi, March 7: Even before Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi started delivering his speech on Tuesday, many workers and supporters of the party started leaving Ramlila Maidan -- the rally venue.

The reason for this unusual behaviour of the party workers was the late arrival of Gandhi, who reached the venue about two hours behind the schedule -- at 6.30 p.m. instead of 4.30 p.m. -- and began his speech around 7.00 p.m.

The rally was organised ahead of the municipal elections likely to be held next month. Even before Gandhi started speaking, a large number of chairs were already empty towards the last rows.

Many supporters and workers complained that they had waited long and could not wait any longer, as they had to travel long distances to reach their homes.

Feroze, a resident of Punjabi Bagh and a daily-wage earner, said: "I came around 2 p.m. and waited too long. I have to leave now. It's already very late. Have to cook at home, so I need to reach home."

Similar reasons were also given by others leaving the venue. A resident of Sangam Vihar, Mohammed Alam, was also leaving the ground while Gandhi was delivering his speech. Alam said that he was a staunch supporter of the Congress, but it was already very late.

--IANS