As the ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ enters its 100th day Friday, Congress watchers feel it has found some answers the party had been looking for on the road for 2024 but questions remain whether it will yield electoral dividends going forward. The Kanyakumari to Kashmir foot march has also courted many controversies and led to several fiery exchanges between the Congress and the BJP including on Rahul Gandhi’s ever-growing grey beard. With over 2,800 km under his belt, Gandhi has managed to catch the attention of his supporters as well as detractors and seen quite a few celebrities including from the tinsel town and academia walking alongside him from time to time. A clearer picture of the impact on the party’s electoral fortunes would emerge in the Assembly polls next year, including in Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, which were covered well by the Yatra.
Former Congress leader Sanjay Jha, who had also been a party spokesperson, said the Bharat Jodo Yatra could become a “game-changer” for the Congress in the long term.
"For one, it has revived the political brand of Rahul Gandhi. The BJP cannot ridicule him anymore using their 'fake news malicious campaign'. Secondly, the Congress has at last connected directly with the people through this mass movement," he said.
Noting that it will definitely percolate to the grassroots, Jha stressed that the critical part from now on is for Congress to sustain the mobilisation through its workers who are galvanized. "The Himachal result shows that the Congress can still pull off a win against BJP if it demonstrates the hunger to win. Next year, the electoral impact of BJY will be more visible in Karna-taka, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, etc.," he said.