Purnea: All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is set to join Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi in the Voter Adhikar Yatra in Supaul on Tuesday.
Addressing a gathering in Araria on Sunday, Rahul Gandhi—who began the 13-day yatra in the poll-bound state on August 17 from Sasaram—alleged a deep-seated partnership between the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), claiming that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Bihar’s electoral roll is an “institutionalised way” of stealing votes.
According to AICC general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal, Priyanka will be in Bihar on August 26 and 27, participating in events in Supaul and Sitamarhi. Her visit coincides with Hartalika Teej—a festival for married women in Bihar.
Priyanka is poised to amplify the opposition’s drive in Supaul—a seat once held by Ranjeet Ranjan, spouse of Purnea MP Rajesh Ranjan (Pappu Yadav)—on August 26, and plans to offer prayers at Sitamarhi’s Janaki Temple the next day.
Also read: Bihar poll officials reject Rahul Gandhi’s claims on voter deletion
{{/usCountry}}Also read: Bihar poll officials reject Rahul Gandhi’s claims on voter deletion
{{/usCountry}}Underscoring Priyanka’s role in countering voter suppression and mobilizing women, a senior Congress leader said, “We’re leaving no stone unturned to secure victory.”
“To save our vote, our Constitution, our democracy, Rahul Gandhi, former deputy chief minister of Bihar Tejashwi Yadav and other Mahagathbandhan leaders will embark on the Voter Adhikar Yatra across Bihar,” Venugopal had said while announcing the Voter Adhikar Yatra.
Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi on Sunday capped the Seemanchal leg of the yatra with a memorable two-kilometre ride on a Royal Enfield motorcycle, with Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee (BPCC) president Rajesh Ram as his pillion rider. Rahul also stopped at a roadside dhaba near Jalalgarh on the Purnea-Araria route, sharing tea and conversations with locals. The previous day in Katihar, he toured a makhana farm, engaging with farmers and workers before posting on X about their hardships and vowing a manifesto for a “debt-free future” for agriculturists.
Also read: Voter Adhikar Yatra: Rahul Gandhi to hit the streets again, this time over Bihar ‘SIR’
Spanning over 20 districts, the yatra will pause on August 25 before resuming from Supaul and Madhubani, with a ‘Mega Voter Adhikar Rally’ at Patna’s Gandhi Maidan scheduled on September 1.
This will be Gandhi’s second yatra in as many years after he took out Phase 2 of the Bharat Jodo Yatra in February 2024, which saw the Congress revive its organisation in some parts of the country and also translate into electoral gains during last year’s general elections.
Among other planned events, the party will take out rallies with the theme ‘Vote Thief—Leave the Throne’ in all state headquarters from August 22 to September 7. From September 15 to October 15, a ‘signature campaign’ will be conducted across the country to protect the right to vote.
On August 7, Gandhi produced data of alleged dubious voters in the Mahadevapura segment of the Bangalore (Central) Lok Sabha constituency and claimed that 1,00,250 “stolen” votes helped the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) win the seat in 2024, as the Wayanad MP accused the ECI of “colluding” with the BJP.
Gandhi claimed that in Mahadevapura, there were 11,965 duplicate voters, 40,009 voters with fake and invalid addresses, 10,452 bulk voters who had a single address, and 4,132 voters with invalid photos.