UPA chief arrives early, waits for Rahul Gandhi in queue

New Delhi: UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi arrived before the Congress president and her son Rahul Gandhi for the plenary session. The entire steering committee of the Congress had lined up for the arrival of Mr Gandhi for the flag-hoisting ceremony that takes place before the session. After the Congress president finished his inaugural address, Mrs Gandhi hugged her son.

Sitting next to Mr Gandhi, she was seen smiling and talking to her son. She also obliged several party workers who were able to sneak in to click a selfie with them. In the Congress Parliamentary Party meeting, she had said that the new Congress president is also her boss.

Interestingly, the current plenary saw a new seating arrangement for the senior leaders of the party. In earlier plenary sessions, the entire leadership of the Congress, including the state leadership, used to sit on the dais. In the present session, only the person speaking was on the dais while all the other leaders were in the audience. However, a small enclosure of about five rows in the front was marked with sofa sets that seated the top leadership. While Sonia and Rahul were seated on one sofa, former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh was sitting next to them.