BENGALURU: As former AICC president Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ will enter Karnataka on Friday morning, the mood in the state Congress is upbeat. In the next 21 days, the yatra will cover over 500 km setting the tone for Congress’ campaign for the 2023 Karnataka Assembly polls.
“It is a historic programme and the mood in the party is jubilant,” KPCC working president and Bharat Jodo Yatra co-convenor Saleem Ahmed told TNIE. The Wayanad MP will enter Karnataka at Gundlupet at around 8 am on Friday. On the first day, the padayatra will be from 9 am to 11 am and it will again resume at 4 pm and go on till 7 pm.
Ahmed said over 20,000 people will walk with Rahul each day. Congress leaders have been preparing for the yatra for the last 3-4 months and several committees headed by former ministers have been given the task of supervising every aspect of the mega programme.
Rahul will interact with farmers, labourers, unemployed youth, students, and members of self-help groups during the yatra. Party leaders will take up several major issues, including unemployment, price rise and corruption to attack the BJP state and central governments. “Rahul Gandhi is not leading the yatra for elections. It is for uniting the country and fighting against communal forces as well as highlight various important issues,” Ahmed said.
KPCC president DK Shivakumar said Congress is trying to make politics people-centric. Taking to a social media platform to appeal to people to join the yatra, Shivakumar said if they want to see change, they must join the movement for change. Shivakumar said the Bharat Jodo Yatra is the first step towards change and under the leadership of Rahul, the Congress is trying to make politics once again people-centric, as opposed to the BJP’s endless greed for power. “Let me warn you that it will be no picnic. We will walk 20 km a day no matter how the weather is,” he added.