The Congress on Wednesday decided to cancel all political rallies, including the immensely popular girls’ marathon, in Uttar Pradesh scheduled over the next 15 days because of rising Covid cases.

While party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra took the decision for Uttar Pradesh, the high command has written to the leadership in the other election-bound states to assess the local situation and decide accordingly. The states have been instructed to strictly follow Covid-19 protocol and avoid gathering crowds as far as possible.

The Congress had internally discussed the issue of holding public rallies in the light of predictions that omicron infections could rise dramatically over the next two weeks. Party leaders and workers have been advised to focus on door-to-door campaign, small meetings and wider use of social media to communicate with the masses.