In a renewed push to revive the Congress party’s organisational strength in Gujarat, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi kicked off his one-day visit to the state on Saturday by addressing newly-appointed district presidents at a key strategy camp near Anand. The event marked the start of a crucial phase in the party’s preparation for the 2027 Gujarat Assembly elections.

The three-day leadership training camp, being held under the banner of Sangathan Sujan Abhiyan, is aimed at equipping district-level leadership with tools and strategies to reinvigorate grassroots support. The camp, attended by the full slate of newly-appointed District Congress Committee (DCC) presidents, is scheduled to conclude on July 28.

Rahul Gandhi flew into Vadodara early in the morning and travelled directly to the venue near Anand, where he addressed party workers and held strategic discussions focused on grassroots mobilisation, outreach planning, and countering BJP’s influence in rural Gujarat.

Later in the day, Gandhi is also expected to engage in a closed-door dialogue with key stakeholders from the state's influential cooperative sector, including dairy farmers and milk union leaders. The interaction comes on the heels of recent protests by dairy farmers outside Sabar Dairy in Himmatnagar, where farmers demanded a hike in procurement prices and voiced concerns over government policies impacting the cooperative model.

Gujarat Congress sources said that the camp aims to draw up a roadmap for “Mission 2027,” with emphasis on issue-based campaigning, district-level communication channels, and training cadres to confront electoral challenges more effectively.

The Gujarat Congress has been undergoing an organisational overhaul, with the appointment of new district presidents seen as a step toward energising the base and making the party more responsive to local concerns.