Talk about posters, dances, artwork, songs or street performances people looked not only anxious to see Rahul Gandhi but they also looked expressing support for the Bharat Jodo Yatra. T-shirts representing the Yatra have been made with its design, print, hand-print and finally worn with pride in and around the Yatra.
Now they ask- will Bharat Jodo Yatra give fillip to the Congress party ahead of 2023 Assembly elections? The answer starts with the fact that the yatra galvanised the cadre and boosted the morale of party workers. The political experts too think in the same direction.
It has been the season of walk or say padayatra along with rallies over the past couple of months across India. On one hand the Opposition Congress calls Bharat Jodo Yatra guided and goaded by its former president Rahul Gandhi a “mega success”, the BJP dubs it a “washout”.
In Karnataka Rahul Gandhi is seen wearing a T-shirt and sneakers, walking nearly 500 kilometers in the state while visiting temples, churches and mosques on the way. He also visited handloom units and tasted raw sugarcane too. He also was seen hugging thousands from all walks of life and all ages on the way ahead with the padyatra. Receiving hundreds of garlands during the day-long yatra, Rahul Gandhi also celebrated Gandhi Jayanti and Dasara with all other party leaders during the Mysuru leg of the yatra.
How amazing is this that the Yuvraj of Congress walks around twenty five kilo meters a day after a light exercise and breakfast during the hot, bituminous road. This is how Rahul Gandhi has been travelling across districts after districts. And yes, he also keeps speaking all along over multiple issues with getting too less time to get exposed to news and news channels or any kind of screen entertainment.
AICC president Sonia Gandhi is out of scene for so long but she has been providing her moral support to her son, though it was just for a couple of hours. A person like Yogendra Yadav, the Swaraj India leader who three years ago had already written the party’s obituary, also appeared in support of the yatra. His objective matched with the one belonging to Rahul Gandhi here – “protecting India’s republic.”
The Yatra not only perspires the Congress-men but on return it fetches spontaneous response from the public. The power corridor pundits consider it a galvanisation for the cadre lifting the spirits of workers around at all levels. Rahul Gandhi’s unpretentious approach could be seen while mingling with farmers, factory workers, daily wagers, shopkeepers, women and children which was well received.
Political experts say, Yatra is most likely to be an energising power for the Congressmen. The public reception is perfectly spontaneous whereas the BJP leadership looks rattled.
On the other hand the main rival party does not find any significance in Rahul’s Padyatra. They say, Bharat Jodo Yatra has not been able to clarified its objective. Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai of Karnatak labels the Congress a “bail party” and says that “fake Gandhis” make alleges their government is corrupt.
This is unprecedented move by a Congress leader what has been transpired by Rahul Gandhi. The top Congressman set up a one hundred and fifty day yatra to cover three thousand five hundred km, has completely missed the campaign in Gujarat as well as in Himachal Pradesh polls too. Now with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party hoping to do well in the two states, political debates certainly will bring in the Yatra during the poll results with its pure or poor impact.
