After much deliberation, the Congress has decided to give a boost to its Lok Sabha election campaign from eastern UP where it would launch “Yuva Sadhbhava Yatra” (footmarch) from Sarnath in Varanasi on Saturday. The march would culminate with vice-president Rahul Gandhi’s rally in Naxal-affected Mirzapur district on March 1. Sarnath, besides being historically significant given that Budhha delivered his first sermon here, is an important seat for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Barring 2004, the seat has been with the BJP since 1991. In 2004, Congress candidate Rajesh Mishra had won the election. It is because of the significance of the seat that the party recently excluded it from the list of Congress primaries. The party had earlier decided to launch the footmarch from central UP but changed the plan a day ago. A team of Youth Congress leaders reached Varanasi Friday to make all the preparations. “While it is up to Rahul Gandhi or any other leader to join us anywhere in the first phase of the eight-day march from Varanasi to Mirzapur, we have been told it would end with a rally of the party vice-president in Mirzapur,” said a leader. The schedule of the yatra is thus: It will be launched in Sarnath on February 22, and youth leaders, along with local leaders, would stay at Lahartara in Varanasi. Then, it would move towards Sewapuri in Varanasi on February 23. After night stay in Sewapuri, the yatra would move towards Sant Ravidas Nagar, where it would make night stays on February 24 and 25, and reach Aurai town of Sant Ravidas Nagar on February 26. On February 27 and 28, the yatra would be in Mirzapur district and would end on March 1 with a rally. Rahul is scheduled to participate in the yatra towards its end. During this yatra, the youth leaders would hold chaupals and generate awareness about the UPA schemes.
