It would be instructive to see what happens when it enters Karnataka, and other States
Rahul Gandhi’s Congress Bharat Jodo Yatra is regularly in the news, as much because of the statements and actions of the Congress leaders as because of the reactions of the Bharatiya Janata Party which they are constantly targeting. Every day, a word war ensues over some or the other issue (which is often trivial), with leaders from both parties trading charges and the bickering reverberating on social media. Monday was no different, with the Congress, on its official Twitter handle, putting up an image of a pair of khaki knickers on fire. Khaki knickers, it may be mentioned, symbolise the RSS, the nucleus of the Sangh Parivar whose member the BJP is. The saffron party was quick and scathing in its response, alleging that the grand old party was “instigating violence”, “hurting nationalists”, and “lighting fires.” Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh, in the counter-counter-attack, slammed the BJP for its comments on Rahul Gandhi’s T-shirt. “This Bharat Jodo Yatra is about inflation and unemployment, Ramesh said, adding that the BJP is talking about shoes and T-shirts because it is afraid. He went on to trash the BJP as a “jhooth ki factory.” While Ramesh is not wide of the mark on inflation and unemployment (which happen to be the ruling coalition’s Achilles’ heel), his own party hasn’t covered itself in glory. The GOP may be opposed to the ideas, ideals, and values RSS upholds, but the former’s antics on Twitter are surely not in good taste.
Still, so far, the 3,570-km Bharat Jodo Yatra has been successful to the extent that it is talked about. More importantly, it has attracted flak from the BJP, which means that the saffron party takes it seriously. Whether or not its success would translate into building a momentum against the BJP is premature to say, but it does indicate that the Congress is waking up from its deep slumber. This should enthuse and encourage the Congress rank and file. For party workers, the exodus of senior leaders, along with the inexplicable decisions of the Rahul-Priyanka duo, must have been depressing. Against this backdrop, the yatra is a welcome development from the perspective. A couple of things seem to have happened in the recent past. First, the Congress’ social media team appears to have become active and aggressive, almost like the BJP IT cell. Secondly, it looks like the Congress is enjoying not just the attention that its yatra is attracting but also the rows that it has occasioned. After all, all publicity, including bad publicity, is good; as they say, badnaam honge to kya naam nahin hoga? This is the reason that it has adopted the tit-for-tat strategy. The BJP’s comments on Rahul’s T-shirt elicited equally scornful remarks about the attire and accoutrements of senior BJP leaders. It would be instructive to see what happens when the Bharat Jodo Yatra enters Karnataka, and then other States from there on.