LUCKNOW: Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Tuesday called her brother Rahul Gandhi a "warrior" and said he is not afraid of the might of the government which spent thousands of crores to destroy his image. She welcomed Rahul Gandhi and the Bharat Jodo Yatra at the Loni border as it entered Uttar Pradesh from Delhi.
Priyanka, who has been looking after party affairs in UP since she took a plunge into active politics on January 23, 2019, was seen showering her brother with praise saying "Rahulji had opened the “shop of love” in the “market of hatred”, adding that he was marching to bring people together and binding them through love and amity.
While addressing a public gathering at the Loni border, Priyanka appealed to the people of Uttar Pradesh to spread love. "I urge everyone in Uttar Pradesh to open a franchise of this 'mohabbat ki dukaan' (shop of love)," she said.
Calling Rahul Gandhi a "warrior", Priyanka said, “Adani ji, Ambani ji bought big politicians, main PSUs of the country, the media, but they could not buy my brother and will never be able to do so... Dear brother, I am so proud of you. All forces were used against you but you stood with the truth holding your ground firmly."
Commenting on Rahul Gandhi’s outfit of choice for the yatra (a t-shirt) during the sweeping cold wave, Priyanka said that "he is indeed not feeling cold as he is wearing the shield of truth".
At the Loni border in Ghaziabad, from where the Bharat Jodo Yatra entered Uttar Pradesh, party workers lined up on both sides of the road to greet Rahul Gandhi and other 'yatris'.
Senior Congress leaders including Salman Khurshid, who is the coordinator of Yatra in UP, along with UPCC chief Brij Lal Khabri and regional heads of the party with scores of supporters from across the state joined the Yatra.
The Congress' Bharat Jodo Yatra started from Kanyakumari in September last year, and it is set to conclude in Srinagar on January 30. The party aims to cover more than 3,500 kms.
In Uttar Pradesh, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is expected to cover a distance of nearly 120 kms across three western UP districts – Ghaziabad, Baghpat and Shamli.
The yatris along with Rahul Gandhi will make a night halt in Mavikala village of Baghpat on Tuesday. The Yatra would reach Shamli and halt at Ellam on Wednesday night. The Yatra will then leave UP from Kairana in Shamli to enter Sonepat in Haryana on January 5.