Rahul-led Bharat Jodo Yatra brought hope, challenged BJP-RSS: Congress

The Congress on Monday described the Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra as a “decisive turning point” in Indian politics that brought fresh hope and energy, as the party marked four years since the march began.

Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said Gandhi had visited the Vivekananda Memorial in Kanyakumari before beginning the march with around 120 other Bharat Yatris.

Ramesh said the padyatra covered 4,080 km across 12 states and two Union Territories over 145 days, concluding with a rally in Srinagar.

He described the march as a transformational event in contemporary Indian politics and said it received support from millions of Indians concerned about rising economic inequalities, social polarisation and what he described as growing political authoritarianism.

According to Ramesh, the central purpose of the yatra was to present an ideological challenge to what the Congress called the “systematic RSS/BJP assault” on constitutional principles, provisions, practices and procedures.

He said the march was not about delivering a “Mann ki Baat” but about listening to “Janta ki Chinta”.

“Today we recall that decisive turning point that infused new hope, imparted new energy and inspired a new resolve,” Ramesh said.

During the march, Gandhi addressed 12 public meetings, more than 100 street-corner meetings and 13 press conferences. He also took part in more than 275 planned walking interactions and over 100 sitting interactions.

The yatra attracted participation from people across different sections of society, including actors and television personalities. Kamal Haasan, Pooja Bhatt, Riya Sen, Swara Bhasker, Rashami Desai, Akanksha Puri and Amol Palekar were among those who joined the march at various points.

Writers and military veterans also participated, including former Army chief Gen (Retd) Deepak Kapoor and former Navy chief Admiral (Retd) L Ramdas.

Former Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan and former finance secretary Arvind Mayaram were also among the prominent participants.

Several opposition leaders joined Gandhi during different stages of the march. They included National Conference leaders Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah, People's Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti, Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders Aaditya Thackeray, Priyanka Chaturvedi and Sanjay Raut, and Nationalist Congress Party (SP) leader Supriya Sule.

The Congress said the yatra drew attention from both Gandhi's supporters and critics during its journey of more than 4,000 km.  (with inputs from PTI)