Congress leans on RaGa to sway public during Kanniyakumari-Kashmir Bharat jodo padayatra

The padayatra (travel by foot) was scheduled by the party following a decision taken by the All India Congress Committee (AICC) at the recent Nav Sankalp Shivir in Udaipur.
Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi.
Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi.

CHENNAI: Congress leader and MP Rahul Gandhi will kick off the Bharat jodo padayatra from Kanniyakumari to Kashmir at the Gandhi Mandapam in Kanniyakumari on October 2, on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary, according to sources.

The padayatra (travel by foot) was scheduled by the party following a decision taken by the All India Congress Committee (AICC) at the recent Nav Sankalp Shivir in Udaipur. The yatra’s objective is to highlight the contribution of the Congress to nation building and spread awareness on the BJP-led Union government’s “anti-people policies”.

A senior party leader, privy to the yatra schedule, told TNIE that the tour from Kanniyakumari to Kashmir would entail 3,571 km, to be covered in 148 days. It would pass through Thrissur, Nilambur, Mysore, Bellary, Alur, Raichur, Vikarabad, Nanded, Jalgaon, Ujjain, Indore, Kotan, Dausa, Alwar, Bulandshahr, Delhi, Ambala, Pathankot and reach Jammu. En route, it would cross 68 Lok Sabha constituencies and 203 Assembly segments. Rahul would enter Kerala from Kanniyakumari and be part of the yatra for at least 120 days.

One of the state-level functionaries of the Congress told TNIE that party leaders believe that only Rahul’s participation would bring mass support to the yatra. At least 1,000 Congress cadre from each district would join Rahul and other leaders for the yatra through their respective districts. The rally would cover 25 km a day.

During the yatra, Rahul and other leaders would address the masses and speak about Congress’ role in nation building from the days of the freedom struggle, the divisive politics of the BJP-led Union government, inflation among others. Congress leaders believe that Rahul’s speeches would leave a lasting impression in the minds of the public. They hope the yatra would give to Congress what LK Advani’s late-1980s yatra gave to the BJP. The TNCC has also decided to organise a separate 75-km-long pathyatra in every district across TN between August 9 and 14 to celebrate the 75th year of Independence of India.

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