Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Himachal Pradesh CM Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and state Congress President Pratibha Singh at the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday. (Photo provided by Congress media)Bharat Jodo Yatra Highlights: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was all praise for Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and the people of the hill state as he walked around 18 km during the day-long leg of his Bharat Jodo Yatra in parts of Kangra district. He called Sukhu ‘zameeni aadmi’ (down-to-earth man) and equated the people of the state with mountains which were “strong but calm”. Addressing a gathering in Malot near Indora in Kangra district Wednesday after finishing the yatra for the day, Gandhi also hit out at the BJP for “spreading hatred, violence and fear” and slammed the opposition party on the issues of inflation, unemployment, demonetization, GST, Agniveer and farmers’ issues. He also accused the BJP of capturing government institutions and said the only way left was to hit roads to highlight those issues.
After spending six days in Punjab, the Rahul Gandhi-led ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ entered Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday morning. After the march entered the state near Ghatota village, Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring handed over the flag to Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and state Congress chief Pratibha Singh. CM Sukhu and Pratibha Singh thanked Gandhi for including the hill state in the yatra, which was initially not included in the scheduled itinerary.
Meanwhile, ahead of the Jammu and Kashmir leg of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra which is set to enter the Union Territory on January 19, the UT’s Congress spokesperson Deepika Pushkar Nath Tuesday resigned from the party. Announcing her resignation over Twitter on Tuesday, Nath cited the decision taken by the party’s unit in the Union Territory to “allow” former minister Choudhary Lal Singh to join the Yatra. Singh was earlier criticized for participating in a rally that supported the accused in the rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl in Kathua in 2018.
Jammu and Kashmir Congress Wednesday said it stands by the family of Kathua rape case victim after its spokesperson Deepika Pushkar Nath resigned from the party over its decision to "allow" an ex-minister, who had allegedly defended the accused, to join the Bharat Jodo Yatra.
Nath, a lawyer by profession, had said on Tuesday that she is leaving the Congress on "ideological grounds" as former minister Lal Singh, who is also the chairman of Dogra Swabhiman Sangathan Party (DSSP), was responsible in sabotaging the 2018 Kathua rape case by "brazenly defending" rapists of the eight-year-old nomadic girl.
"She (Deepika) announced her decision to resign from the party on Twitter. The high command has taken note and will decide on it. However, the stand of our party on the rape and murder case is crystal clear as we stand with the family of the victim and have always favoured a fair probe to bring the culprits to book," J&K Pradesh Congress Committee chief spokesperson Ravinder Sharma told PTI.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi may curtail the distance on foot during the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Jammu and Kashmir, party leader Jairam Ramesh said on Wednesday, stressing that there will be no compromise on security. He said they are having discussions with authorities in Jammu and Kashmir.
"Rahul Gandhi would undertake padyatra in Jammu and Kashmir but there would be no compromise with security. We are having a consultation with the state authorities regarding the security and maybe the distance on foot could be curtailed," Ramesh, who is Congress general secretary in-charge communications, said.
He was addressing a press conference here on the sidelines of the Bharat Jodo Yatra which entered Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday morning. (PTI)
Addressing a press conference in Himachal Pradesh Wednesday, Congress MP and General Secretary in-charge of Communications interrupted a journalist who asked him to comment on the resignation of the Jammu and Kashmir Congress spokesperson Deepika Pushkar Nath.
Ramesh said, 'I won't speak about it right now ... will comment once we are in Jammu.' The Congress spokesperson Nath on Tuesday resigned from the party, citing the UT Congress' decision to “allow” former minister Choudhary Lal Singh to join the Yatra. Read more here.
A new trend of politicians hitting the roads and holding rallies has emerged in Haryana after Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra completed its Haryana leg.
The Haryana unit of the Congress has declared that it will conduct a two-month-long ‘Haath-Se-Haath Jodo Abhiyan’ which will be led by Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president Udai Bhan and former state CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda.
Another yatra, dubbed as 'Parivartan Rally' will be conducted which will cover all 90 Assembly constituencies in the state, as announced by INLD Ellenabad MLA and former Leader of Opposition Abhay Singh Chautala. Chautala said he would cover the length and breadth of the state in about seven months. The state is scheduled to go to polls in 2024. Read here.
In a video message shared by the official Twitter handle of the Congress party, the party's president Mallikarjun Kharge Wednesday appealed to the citizens of the nation to "come out of your homes, and stand with them [Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party] against price rise, unemployment, and the hatred spread by the BJP-RSS."
He said, "Rahul Gandhi has been leading the nationwide foot march since September 7, 2022 ... and he is inching closer to his destination." Talking about the rights of Indian citizens, he said, "This is our country, Our Constitution and democracy are under threat today. It is important to protect these institutions. It is important to fight for the rights of the citizens."
"The Yatra has received immense support from the people of the country, and many are continuing to join the yatra. It is my appeal to you to join the voice of Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party, and raise the slogan of "Nafrat Chhodo, Bharat Jodo" (Leave hatred, Unite India).
As the day-long leg of the Bharat Jodo Yatra resumed from Ghatota in the Kangra district along the Himachal Pradesh border Wednesday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi visited the Shiva temple at Kathgarh in Himachal Pradesh.
Ahead of the Jammu and Kashmir leg of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra which is set to enter the Union Territory on January 19, the state’s Congress spokesperson Deepika Pushkar Nath Tuesday resigned from the party.
Nath said she was “left with no option but to resign” from the Congress over the decision taken by the party’s state unit to “allow” former minister Choudhary Lal Singh to join the Yatra. Read more here.
Bharat Jodo Yatra Wednesday resumed from Ghatota in the Kangra district along the Himachal Pradesh border, after the flag handover ceremony was held in the presence of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, and Himachal CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.
The yatra will stop for a break at Kshatriya College in Indora around 11 am and will resume at 3 pm from Kathgarh Road, Nadaun in the state. It will halt at Shah Colony in Pathankot, Punjab towards the end of the day. Read more here.
Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra is set to resume Wednesday from Himachal Pradesh, following the flag handover ceremony being held at Ghatota in the Kangra district of the state. Originally not a part of the plan, the yatra will now go to Srinagar after passing through parts of Himachal along the border it shares with Punjab.
AICC in-charge of Jammu & Kashmir and party MP Rajni Patil said here Tuesday that Rahul Gandhi will hoist the Tricolour at the Congress headquarters in Srinagar on January 30, and not the Lal Chowk, saying unfurling it there was part of “the RSS agenda”.
“We do not believe in the agenda of the RSS to hoist the Tricolour at Lal Chowk, where it has already flown high,” Patil said when asked about the plan for Rahul to hoist the national flag on the culmination of the Bharat Jodo Yatra on January 30. Read more
Glimpses from Bharat Jodo Yatra today.
In a rare statement on BJP MP Varun Gandhi, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi Tuesday said they had two different ideologies, and that he could not accept the one adopted by his cousin. Addressing a press conference during his Bharat Jodo Yatra in Punjab, Rahul said, “I can meet him, hug him but I can’t accept that ideology”.
“Varun Gandhi is in BJP, if he walks here then it might be a problem for him. My ideology doesn’t match his ideology. I can never go to Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)’s office; I’ll have to be beheaded before that. My family has an ideology. At some point in time, and maybe even today, Varun adopted another, and I can’t accept that ideology. I can meet him, hug him but I can’t accept that ideology,” Rahul told reporters. Read more
After the video of a man entering the security ring of Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra and hugging him emerged early Tuesday, the Congress leader, while addressing a press conference, asked why people were calling it a lapse.
“Why are you calling it a lapse … Someone came to hug me. It’s not a lapse … It has happened many times before. There’s enthusiasm about the yatra… sometimes people are over-excited… I wouldn’t call it a security lapse,” he said during a press conference when the yatra halted at Ghaunspur village on the Urmar-Mukerian road. Read more here.
The Bharat Jodo Yatra will culminate on January 30 in Srinagar, with a flag-hoisting ceremony on the anniversary of the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi.
The Yatra has undoubtedly enthused the Congress cadre and infused new life in a party that was deemed finished. More importantly, it has replaced the earlier “Pappu” image of Rahul Gandhi with that of a mature individual and credible political leader. His message of removing hate and introducing love between communities in the nation has made a mark, igniting much debate on social media.
Attempts by BJP leaders to criticise the Yatra and Rahul Gandhi have not achieved much success. The seminal question is whether the Yatra can bring electoral success for the Congress.
Read the column by Sudha Pai here.
The video shows a person running towards Rahul Gandhi and hugging him before being pushed back immediately by his security. A second incident of an alleged security breach took place near the village of Bassi.
Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring later denied there was a security breach at the Yatra. Warring said Rahul had invited them to meet him. The incident took place in Punjab’s Hoshiarpur district.
Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring Tuesday denied there was a security breach at the Bharat Jodo Yatra, after videos emerged showing two people entering Rahul Gandhi’s security ring.
Warring said Rahul had invited them to meet him. The incident took place in Punjab’s Hoshiarpur district. A video showed a person running towards Rahul and hugging him before being pushed back immediately by his security. A second incident of an alleged security breach took place near the village of Bassi.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has hit back at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for his "remote control" jibe at him, ANI reported.
Mann said, "I was made a CM by the people of Punjab, while you insulted the elected CM Captain Amarinder Singh." A day earlier, Gandhi took a swipe at the CM saying that he should run the state independently and not be under anyone’s remote control. Addressing a gathering at Urmur Tanda in Hoshiarpur on the fifth day of his Bharat Jodo Yatra’s Punjab leg, the Congress leader had said that Punjab should be run from Punjab, and not from Delhi.
"Rahul ji, it is better if you don't speak rubbish in Punjab. The people of Punjab have made me the CM while Channiji was made by Rahul Gandhi. In just 2 minutes, you had removed the elected CM Captain Saheb from Delhi by insulting him. It is better you don't speak," Mann tweeted on Monday.
The Punjab leg of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra entered its sixth day with the Congress leader resuming the yatra from Jhingar Khurd, near Urmar Tanda in Hoshiarpur district, Tuesday at around 7 am.
The yatra is scheduled to stop for a break at Ghaunspur village on the Urmar-Mukerian road at around 11 am, after completing its morning phase. Before resuming the yatra in the evening, Rahul will be addressing a press conference at 1 pm. Read more.
Former fighter pilot, Rajiv Tyagi of MiG-21 Tuesday walked with Rahul Gandhi on its fifth day in Punjab. He shared his experience of participating in the yatra through a video message.
On the fifth day of the Punjab leg of his Bharat Jodo Yatra, Rahul Gandhi Monday trained his guns on Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, his AAP government, and Arvind Kejriwal saying that Punjab should be run from the state and not from Delhi.
“This is about the history and honour of Punjab. You should work here independently. The Punjab CM should listen to what is in the hearts of the farmers and labourers in the state and work accordingly and should not become someone’s remote control.” Gandhi said.
During the yatra on Monday, Gandhi also met historian S Irfan Habib, Kanshi Ram's sister Swaran Kaur and Navjot Singh Sidhu's wife Dr. Navjot Kaur Sidhu, among others. Read more.
Today's yatra resumed from Tanda in the Hoshiarpur district at about 7 am, and is scheduled to reach Mukerian by 6:30 pm.
As Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra entered its fifth day in Punjab on Monday, hundreds of women including MGNREGA workers and Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) walked with him. The yatra was dedicated to the cause of women empowerment for the day.
In the morning, Rahul mainly interacted with school and college students, little girls as well as elderly women during his walk which lasted about four hours. Many of the women were seen shouting Bharat Jodo slogans and walking briskly. Read more
On the fifth day of the Bharat Jodo Yatra's Punjab leg, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi Monday hit out at Punjab Chief Minisiter Bhagwant Mann, asking him not to 'come under the pressure' of Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party supremo Arvind Kejriwal.
Calling out CM Mann, Rahul said, "You are the Chief Minister of Punjab. You should run Punjab from Punjab. You should not come under the pressure of Delhi, under the pressure of Arvind Kejriwal. This is a matter of honour for Punjab. You must work independently. You should not become a remote control for anyone.'
During the Bharat Jodo Yatra on Monday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi met late politician and social reformer Kanshi Ram's sister Swaran Kaur and Kanshi Ram Foundation president Lakhbir Singh.
Himachal Pradesh Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said the Congress party is gearing up to welcome Rahul Gandhi in the state where the Bharat Jodo Yatra would cover nearly 23 kilometres.
"Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra will enter Himachal Pradesh, where he will walk around 23 kilometres on foot. Many state Congress leaders will also participate. He said all security-related and other arrangements have been completed regarding the yatra," he said.
Cricketer-turned-politician and Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu’s wife Dr Navjot Kaur Sidhu Monday joined the evening leg of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra from Kharal Kalan in Jalandhar district where the Yatra had halted after completing the morning leg from Kala Bakra near Adampur.
Dr Sidhu, a former chief parliamentary secretary, joined the yatra with her son Karan Sidhu. Navjot Singh Sidhu is currently lodged in Patiala Central Jail where he is undergoing one-year imprisonment in a road rage case dating back to 1988. Read more
Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar targeted the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) during the Bharat Jodo Yatra at Jalandhar in Punjab on Monday. He said both organisations share the same ideology, which is fundamentally different from that of the Congress.
“We are using the names BJP and RSS here because there has been a discussion in some corners about why Rahul Gandhi mentions the RSS when it does not attack him. It is an illusion that the BJP and the RSS are separate. Whatever attack the BJP launches on the Bharat Jodo Yatra or the Congress, it is the RSS that is behind it,” he told reporters in Adampur during the first break of the Yatra. Read more
The evening leg of today's Yatra resumed from Adampur and is scheduled to reach Hoshiarpur by the end of the day.
From his much-talked-about T-shirt to what he does to beat the chilling weather of North India during the ongoing Bharat Jodo Yatra in the region to its impact on the people, Rahul Gandhi and Haryana Congress leaders discussed several issues on the last day of the state’s leg of the march.
A Congress leader told the former party president that people in almost every village of Haryana are talking about his T-shirt and asking if he doesn’t feel cold. They have also asked about what he eats to beat the cold, the leader added. Replying to this query, Gandhi said, “I would have to shoot a video. It is coffee that I drink which has lots of milk and very little coffee in it”.
Manjeet Singh Ferozepuria, who tied the kesari turban on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi before the beginning of his Bharat Jodo Yatra, has claimed that he declined to pre tie a turban which was to be placed on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s head on the occasion of 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev which marked the opening of Kartarpur corridor in November 2019.
32-year-old Ferozpuria, who has been running a turban tying teaching academy in Bathinda for around 15 years now, told The Indian Express that then local BJP leadership approached him, asking him to tie a turban for PM Modi that they can place on his head.
“But, I refused. That would have been like wearing a topi (cap) and would have meant disrespect to the turban. Dastar (turban) sir te sajayee jaandi hai (Turban is tied on the head of the person who is to wear it). So, I refused to pre-tie a turban for PM Modi. That does not mean, I have anything against Modi,” said Ferozepuria, who is in the eye of a storm from a section of people for tying dastaar on scion of a family that they blame for “attack on Golden Temple” and “Sikh genocide”.
Former fighter pilot of the Indian Air Force participated in the Bharat Jodo Yatra and walked alongside Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Punjab.
Ex-servicemen led by Veer Chakra awardee Major General Sheonan Singh who is the nephew of Bhagat Singh also joined the march.
Rahul Gandhi, who resumed the Bharat Jodo Yatra Sunday noon after attending the last rites of late Jalandhar MP Chaudhry Santokh Singh, was later joined by Balkaur Singh, father of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala who was gunned down last May.
Dressed formally, Singh walked hand in hand with Rahul for a stretch. Both of them could be seen talking. Later, Balkaur Singh also gifted Rahul a portrait of Moosewala. Rahul had visited Balkaur Singh at Moosa village to condole Moosewala’s death last year. (Read More)
Before the end of Sunday’s Bharat yatra, Major General (retired) Sheonan Singh, nephew of Shaheed Bhagat Singh, also walked with Rahul Gandhi in Jalandhar.
He wished him good luck for the yatra and said that he will support whatever campaign will be taken out to unite the country. He also gifted his book to Rahul Gandhi and both discussed Bhagat Singh and Pt Jawaharlal Nehru.
Later on Sunday evening, Rahul Gandhi on his Facebook post wrote about his feelings regarding the yatra’s leg in Punjab. He wrote that blessed by five rivers, Punjab is known for its fertile land. “But even nature’s gifts must be nurtured and worked upon for them to yield benefits. It is the tapasya of the people of Punjab that has turned this land of great opportunity into a land of prosperity, over time. Their tapasya has also made the people of Punjab fearless, generous, warm and compassionate. As I walk through this remarkable state, every heart I connect with has a common story to tell, a story of relentless efforts to put at the country’s interests, a story of true love for India, he added. (Read More)
Having recently joined Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra in Delhi, veteran actor Kamal Haasan on Sunday said he would have walked the streets of the national capital during the Emergency as well if he had that much sense of politics in the 1970s.
Speaking on the concluding day of the sixth Kerala Literature Festival, the actor-turned-politician clarified that one should not mistake his being part of the yatra to leaning towards a "party" as he did that for a "united India".
"...if I had this much sense of politics in the 1970s and there was Emergency, I would have walked the streets of Delhi. Please do not mistake this (my joining the Bharat Jodo Yatra) as my leaning towards a party; This was for a united India," Haasan said. (PTI)
Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo yatra entered its fifth day in Punjab on Monday. Punjab has three regions, namely, Majha, Malwa and Doaba. It will be Rahul’s third day in the Doaba region.
Today he resumed his yatra from the Kala Bakra village near Bhogpur in Jalandhar district at 7:00 am. The first break will take place at 11:00 am in the village of Kharal Kalan. And from there it will resume at 3:00 pm and proceed towards Tanda Urmur in district Hoshiarpur on the Jalandhar Pathankot National Highway. The yatra will halt at 6:00 pm and the night stay would be at Khudda near Tanda.
Yesterday, Rahul had heaped praises on the people of Punjab on his Facebook handle. Rahul wrote, Blessed by five rivers, Punjab is known for its fertile land. (Read More)