Gorakhpur: Congress general secretary and Amethi MP Rahul Gandhi, who has been visiting flood-hit districts in eastern Uttar Pradesh, held a private meeting with Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav's son Akhilesh in Deoria, officials said Friday.

The meet took place Thursday in Deoria, 70 km from here, but party officials provided no details about the talks.

"It was a closed door meeting and we have no details of the discussions," Ram Kumar Bhargava, spokesperson of the Uttar Pradesh Congress, told reporters.

Akhilesh, who was in Deoria to address a public meeting, met Gandhi in the government rest house.

At his public rally earlier in the day, Akhilesh declared Gandhi would be the next prime minister of the country.

"He (Yadav) made the announcement in his rally and asked the audience to vote for the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance," a party source said.

Over 10,000 people have been displaced by floods in the Gorakhpur region. Gandhi reached Gorakhpur Thursday and visited various flood affected villages of Deoria, Kushinagar and Padrauna districts of the region.

The Congress leader also flagged off a convoy carrying relief material to Kushinagar and flood affected areas of Bihar.

On Friday, he met patients suffering from Japanese Encephalitis at the B.R.D. Medical College in Gorakhpur.

"He promised all possible help to the patients," Bhargava said.

A few days ago, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati had visited the flood-affected areas of this region, but did not meet the Japanese Encephalitis patients, he added.

According to health department reports, six people have died of the disease in the region in the last couple of days and the toll has reached 216 since June.

 

Source : ians