ALLAHABAD/MIRZAPUR: Strengthening the political legacy of her ancestors in Uttar Pradesh, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra seems to have had a ready reckoner to plan her debut election tour.Her carefully planned itinerary for the Uttar Pradesh campaign ahead of Lok Sabha elections follows a pattern. It is dotted with prominent places visited by her father and grandmother — both former Prime Ministers — and even her great great grandfather. Recently, these sites saw the presence of her mother and brother too.On Monday, Priyanka had kicked off her campaign from Allahabad where at the ghats of Sangam, she attracted huge crowds. While one could hear frequent conversations among people about how she resembled her grandmother Indira Gandhi, many in the gathering recalled multiple visits to the same place by the former Prime Minister.Even the team of boatmen who would carry Team Priyanka across the Ganga during the three-day poll voyage of Allahabad, Bhadohi, Mirzapur and Varanasi are part of the legacy.Boatman Ashok Sahni Kewat, 59, said, “I took Indiraji in my boat in 1977, when I was all of 18. Now, I am a father of five and each of them is reliving the experience. They asked me to take photographs with Priyanka ji and frame them.”Ahead of the Ganga Yatra, Priyanka also offered prayers at the ‘immortal tree’ Akshayvat at Allahabad Fort and the Bade Hanuman temple.As she offered milk and flowers to the deity, locals recalled her grandmother’s visit to the shrine on September 25, 1979.During that visit, Indira had visited Sangam and the temple, said Javaid Urfi, Congress Allahabad zonal coordinator.On Tuesday, too, Priyanka walked the path tread by her grandmother and great great grandfather Motilal Nehru. Having reached Mirzapur, she began her trip from the Vindhyachal Temple.Goddess Vindhyavasini being the ‘Kuldevi’ of the Gandhi family, Indira had visited the temple thrice earlier—twice being after the Emergency (1977-78).The visitor’s book at the temple bears testimony to the visits and on Tuesday, Priyanka’s note in it expressed happiness in connecting with the family’s history there. According to the temple priest, Sonia Gandhi (2004), Rahul (twice) and Priyanka’s cousin Varun (2016) have also marked their presence there.Continuing with pursuing her heritage, Priyanka also visited the 700-year-old Kantit Dargah Shareef the same day.Known for its uniqueness—a saffron chadar from a Hindu household is the first to be placed on the grave at the dargah on the annual urs—the shrine has been visited by Indira, Sonia and twice by Rahul.“Indira Gandhi had come here 40 years ago and my mother had assisted her in seeking blessings of ‘baba’. I had done the same for Sonia Gandhi and twice with Rahul Gandhi,” said dargah caretaker Sabir Shah.UP Congress spokesperson and co-coordinator for the yatra in Mirzapur Anshu Awasthi also recalls that Indira had visited the temple and the dargah in 1977-78.Further, when Priyanka continues her journey into Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s constituency on Wednesday, the party general secretary will offer prayers at the historic Kashi Vishwanath temple.Her father Rajiv Gandhi and her grandmother have both offered prayers at the temple, said senior Congress leader and former district president Satish Chaubey.According to Rajendra Tiwari, the brother of former mahant Kulpati Tiwari, Indira had visited Kashi Vishwanath temple in 1978, soon after her defeat in the 1977 elections. She again visited the temple in 1981 after her victory in the 1980 elections.Rajiv had offered prayers at the temple just before the 1984 Lok Sabha elections, said Tiwari.Years later, Priyanka’s brother Rahul visited the grand temple before the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Later, he paid a visit to the temple with SP president Akhilesh Yadav in March 2017 during the UP assembly elections.(With inputs from Rohan Dua, Shailvee Sharda, Binay Singh, Yusra Husain)

Stay updated with all the Allahabad Latest News headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.