Battling the ideology that killed Gandhi: Rahul
The letter was written when the foot march was at Badanavalu Khadi Gramodyaga Kendra, which Mahatma Gandhi had visited back in 1927.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who is canvassing the state on Sunday, said Bharat Jodo Yatra is a battle against the ideology that killed Mahatma Gandhi.
The leader, on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary, said, “Just as Gandhiji fought the British Raj, we are battling with the ideology that killed Gandhi – the ideology that delivered inequality, divisiveness and erosion of our hard-won freedom – in the past eight years.”
“The Bharat Jodo Yatra aims at spreading the message of ‘ahimsa’ and ‘swaraj’ and is against the politics of ‘himsa’ and ‘asatya’. This battle is across country – from Kanyakumari to Kashmir,” Rahul said, in a letter.
The letter was written when the foot march was at Badanavalu Khadi Gramodyaga Kendra, which Mahatma Gandhi had visited back in 1927.
“Swaraj has multiple meanings – it is freedom from fear, which is something that our farmers, youth, and small and medium enterprises desire. It is freedom of our states to exercise their constitutional freedom and of our villages to practice Panchayati Raj system,” he said.
“It is also the conquest of self of Bharat Yatris who are travelling 3,600km by foot or lakhs of citizens who are walking with us for shorter period. This yatra is the quiet and determined voice of Indians against politics of fear, hatred and division,” he added.
“It is convenient for those in power to appropriate Gandhi’s legacy, but it is much more difficult to walk in his footsteps,” Rahul has said in the letter.
The Yatra will traverse at least eight districts in Karnataka, covering around 510km, to mobilise support for the party ahead of the state and Lok Sabha elections.
The state unit is hoping that the Yatra will help fight the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in polls by raising issues of “corruption, communalism, lack of development, and ineffective governance”, among other issues.
“Many men, women and children are taking part in the Yatra. People fear that the values that Gandhi ji gave his life for as well as our constitutional rights are under threat. I request my fellow citizens to walk with us in the spirit of ‘ahimsa’ and ‘sadbhavana’,” Rahul said.
On Sunday, Rahul Gandhi invited members of different communities of Badanavalu village in Mysuru for lunch to boost the spirit of unity. He also inaugurated a 180m road, which was not in use since the last 29 years and named it Bharat Jodo road. The leader went on to plant saplings on Khadi Gramodyog Kendra premises to mark his visit.
(With inputs from Coovercolly Indresh)
