NEW DELHI:
Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi will join Bharat Jodo Yatra on October 6 in Karnataka’s Mandya district, a top source told ANI on Sunday. It appears that Congress is trying to rejuvenate the party ahead of the Assembly elections in several States and 2024 Lok Sabha polls as Congress presidential elections will be held on October 17 in which Shashi Tharoor and Mallikarjun Kharge are in a direct fight while Gandhis have opted out of the race.
She is expected to leave for Karnataka on Monday afternoon and will reach the Mysore district. Sonia Gandhi will stay in Madikeri town of Kodagu district for two days before joining the Yatra.
Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will also be joining the Yatra a day after Sonia Gandhi will join it, the source added. Although Priyanka Gandhi’s program is yet to be finalised, she was expected to join the yatra earlier but due to some reasons she couldn’t join it, the sources said.
It will be the first time when all three Gandhis will be present in the Bharat Jodo Yatra which started from Kanyakumari on September 7 and has travelled from Tamil Nadu, Kerala and will cover 511 kilometres of the area in 21 days. Sonia Gandhi recently travelled abroad for her medical checkup but during this period she lost her mother too.
Now the public appearance of all three Gandhis will be witnessed amid the schedule of the Congress president election and none of the Gandhis are fighting the poll. Meanwhile, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi addressed a public rally amid a heavy downpour in Mysuru during the ongoing ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’.
“In uniting India, no one can stop us. From raising the voice of India, no one can stop us. Will go from Kanyakumari to Kashmir, no one can stop the Bharat Jodo Yatra,” Rahul Gandhi tweeted. Gandhi along with party leaders attended an event at Badanavalu, Mysuru to mark the 153rd birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, on the 25th day of Bharat Jodo Yatra.
Rahul Gandhi offered a floral tribute to the Mahatma Gandhi statue at Khadi Gramodyog, Badanavalu Karnataka at 8 am followed by a prayer meeting. On the 25th day of Bharat Jodo Yatra, Gandhi visited Khadi Village Industries at Badnavalu in memory of Bapu.
Gandhi also met women weavers and talked about their experiences and challenges at work. He undertook a tree plantation by Bharat Yatris Khadi Garmodyog, Badanavalu. The participants of the 3,500-km march from Kanyakumari to Kashmir will stay near JSS Grounds, near Exhibition Grounds Mysuru.
The march was aimed to cover as many as 12 States in five months. It recently reached Karnataka on Friday (September 30) and will be here for the next 21 days before moving north. The Padyatra (march) is covering a distance of 25 km every day.
According to Congress, the ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ is being held to combat the divisive politics of the BJP-led Centre and to awaken the people of the country to the dangers of economic inequalities, social polarisation and political centralisation. The Yatra includes Padayatras, rallies, and public meetings which will be attended by the senior Congress leaders including Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
Notably, all the party MPs, leaders and workers along with Rahul Gandhi are staying. Sleeping beds, toilets and AC are also installed in some of the containers. During the journey, the temperature and environment will differ in many areas. The arrangements have been made keeping in view the intense heat and humidity with the change of places. The Congress suffered a debacle in the assembly polls held earlier this year and the Yatra is seen as an attempt to rally the party rank and file for the upcoming electoral battles. (ANI)
