Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra: In Raebareli, Rahul targets govt over Agniveer scheme

The yatra, which started at 3 pm from Raebareli’s Saaras Chauraha, headed to Harchadanpur, and then to Bachrawan. From there, the yatra took the Sultanpur road to Lucknow where it entered around 6:30 pm. In Lucknow, the yatra crossed the main city’s Hazratganj area and headed to old Lucknow where Gandhi gave a speech at the Ghanta Ghar in the evening. The yatra will stay in Lucknow’s Banthra area on the outskirts and will head to Kanpur on Wednesday.

Speaking in Raebareli, Rahul alleged that that Adani Defence is being given “all contracts of defence sector.”“The money the Agniveers should get… It is being given by (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi ji to his friend,” he alleged. “I said this in Parliament. You must have seen the speech. They removed me from Lok Sabha. My membership was cancelled.

The Supreme Court later said that Rahul Gandhi’s suspension must be revoked and then I came back to the Parliament. They took away my house, and gave me two years’ jail time. I said take the house, I don’t need it. My house is in the hearts of crores of people of India. I thank you all from my heart. I ask you to fight for your rights. This is your country, not of the one per cent. Please stand up and become aware. Take what is yours.” He also claimed, “They are telling Agniveer that they will not give you the status of martyr…”

Earlier, the Lucknow-Sultanpur Highway saw hundreds of people wait for hours for Rahul’s convoy to pass by. His convoy was showered with flower petals, and slogans praising the leader were raised along the route.

Speaking about the need for a caste census, Gandhi said, “In UP, I see posters about unemployment, inflation and paper leaks. That means you invest your money, take tuition, and then when the time for examination comes, the one per cent people take the paper in advance and steal it. And you keep watching. I have said that Backwards, Dalits and Adivasis make up 73 per cent of the population, and if you see any institution or the big businesses, courts, judiciary, media, you will see that the people from the 73 per cent are nowhere.

You see the list of owners of private hospitals, you will not find a Backward. You see the list of owners of colleges, and universities, you will not find a Dalit or Adivasi. You see the bureaucrats. Same. The country is being ruled by 2-3 per cent people. You have to bear the brunt of inflation and unemployment. These 2-3 per cent people enjoy the benefits.”

Talking about the media, Gandhi said, “Their owners are multi-billionaires. They never talk about farmers, Dalits and farmers. This is the future of India. Paper leaks, unemployment, and paper leaks. This is the future of the country. On the other hand, they keep diverting your attention all the time… The first step is a caste census, which will help you find out how much your population is. After that, you need to find out who has the country’s wealth.

In Raebareli, Rahul also met an exam aspirant for the UP Police constable recruitment exam, and hit out at the government over “paper leaks”.

Speaking on Tuesday evening in the old city of Lucknow, Rahul said, “During the first yatra, I asked thousands of people, including farmers, workers and unemployed youth, why hatred was being spread in the country. I got this answer from thousands of people that the poor can’t get justice in this country… Justice is only for the rich millionaires. The rest are living a life of injustice.”