E-Paper
Rahul Gandhi at 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' in Kanyakumari: 'Institutions under attack from RSS, BJP'
Congress Bharat Jodo Yatra: Notably, the yatra will officially begin at 7am Thursday when Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, will embark on the journey on foot.
Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday kicked off the Congress's ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ as he along with other party leaders and workers began the rally in Tamil Nadu's Kanyakumari. Ahead of the much-touted 3,570-km yatra, Gandhi also paid a visit to Vivekananda Memorial in the coastal town. While Congress leaders have denied any political angle to this initiative, many are seeing this as the party's attempts to solidify its base to take on the BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Addressing a party rally in Kanyakumari, Rahul Gandhi said: “It gives me great joy to begin Bharat Jodo Yatra from this beautiful place. The national flag represents the religion & language of every single person living in this country. They (BJP & RSS) think that this flag is their personal property."
Also read | On Robert Vadra's pic on Congress posters, BJP's dig: 'Not Bharat Jodo, but...'
Gandhi accused the BJP-RSS of dividing the country on religious lines, adding that every single institution of the country is under attack as he also sought the support of people to help keep the country united.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi called ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ a landmark occasion of the party and said she was confident that the organisation will be rejuvenated with the initiative. “I will be participating daily in thought and spirit," she added.
Earlier in the day, Rahul Gandhi attended a prayer meeting at the Rajiv Gandhi Memorial in Sriperumbudur, where the former prime minister was assassinated in a suicide bomb blast in 1991. The Wayanad MP also paid floral tribute to his father and sat in front of the memorial for about 25 minutes.
He later wrote on Twitter: “I lost my father to the politics of hate and division. I will not lose my beloved country to it too. Love will conquer hate. Hope will defeat fear. Together, we will overcome.”
Also read | ‘Rahul should go to Pakistan if Cong wants...’: Assam CM’s jibe at ‘Bharat Jodo’
Gandhi was welcomed by Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin who had also joined the Congress leader for the prayer meet at the Gandhi Memorial.
In a symbolic gesture of the commencement of Bharat Jodo Yatra, MK Stalin had also handed over the national flag to Rahul Gandhi as both the leaders saluted the tricolour.
The yatra will officially begin at 7am on Thursday when Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, will embark on the journey on foot.
The yatra which began in Kanyakumari will then move northwards passing through Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Nilambur, Mysuru, Bellary, Raichur, Vikarabad, Nanded, Jalgaon, Indore, Kota, Dausa, Alwar, Bulandshahr, Delhi, Ambala, Pathankot, Jammu, and culminate in Srinagar.
(With agency inputs)
