Sonia regrets storming of Golden Temple by army

Sonia Gandhi, who was dressed in a suit with a cream shawl, was accompanied by a cheerful Priyanka and her husband.

Without naming `Operation Bluestar’, she left the matter just short of an apology, saying she did not want to go deep into the anguish suffered by the people. `Jo kuchh June 6 ko huya, uska mujhe dukh hua’ (what happened on June 6 caused me anguish) She also narrated the pain that Rajiv Gandhi and her family had felt on the death of Sant Longowal, which happened on Rajiv’s birthday.

Her comments came a day after Congress expressed "unreserved" apology over the demolition of Babri Mosque and heaped the entire blame on former Premier P V Narasimha Rao for failing to prevent it.

Striking a direct chord with the audience, which had come more to see her and daughter Priyanka, Sonia tried to gain their sympathies by harping on the sacrifices and contribution of her family, making repeated references of Nehru, Indira and her slain husband Rajiv in her well-prepared speech.

“Three generations of my family have made sacrifices for the country,” she highlighted.

In spite of minor problems while pronouncing certain words, Sonia started with `namaskar’ and `sat sri Akal’, amidst cheers from the audience, which had turned receptive towards the end of her speech by repeating `Jai Hind’ after her. The audience, was also unanimous in raising hands in Sonia’s favour during the impressive rally.

Along with local Congress leaders, Sonia impressed upon the audience to vote the Congress to power, which will lead the nation in the 21st century by providing a secure future.

From sharing the grief of people in the area, to talking about corruption, unemployment and inflation plaguing the nation, Sonia tried to highlight the crisis that the nation was in, which had made the life of a common man difficult. In order to win over the masses, especially the youth and women, she said the Congress was the only party which could free the nation from such problems and put it on the path of further development.

Admitting that the Congress had certain shortcomings, Sonia said it was the only party which had the `right leadership’ that could lead the nation to great heights, as it had both the “ability and experience’ in achieving so.