Patna: Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, is expected to visit Bihar again at the end of May, with the state Congress preparing to host a major conference focused on extremely backward and backward classes in Nalanda. If confirmed, this will mark Gandhi’s fifth visit to the state in five months — signalling the party’s intensified outreach among marginalised communities ahead of the 2025 Bihar Assembly polls.
Although the Congress is yet to formally announce the date of the Nalanda conference, sources within the party say that plans are underway to position the event as a platform for Rahul Gandhi to engage directly with voters from historically disadvantaged groups.
His upcoming visit comes just days after a political storm erupted during his May 15 visit to Darbhanga, where he was allegedly stopped by the administration from visiting the Dr Ambedkar Kalyan Hostel. The situation escalated into a confrontation between Congress workers and police, following which Gandhi reached the hostel on foot and met Dalit students — an act the party described as a symbolic stand against institutional suppression.
Two FIRs were subsequently filed against Gandhi in connection with the incident, sparking sharp reactions from the Congress leadership. Bihar Congress in-charge Krishna Allavaru accused the BJP-led administration of orchestrating the disruption, calling it a deliberate attempt to suppress the voice of Dalits and block Rahul Gandhi’s engagement with marginalised communities.
“This is not just administrative interference; it’s a conspiracy from the top,” Allavaru said, alleging that the venue for the interaction had initially been cleared and infrastructure was prepared, only to be altered at the last minute under political pressure. “The Bihar government is afraid of Congress and Rahul Gandhi,” he added.
State Congress president Rajesh Ram echoed similar sentiments, criticising the FIRs and the reported pressure to name student participants. “The administration and the government are not just fighting Congress — they are trying to silence Dalit voices. At least don’t try to arrest 100 students for showing up,” Ram said.
Gandhi, meanwhile, has dismissed the FIRs, reportedly telling party colleagues that such cases are like “medals” in his political journey — a comment the party has used to frame him as undeterred in his mission to challenge entrenched power structures.
