Bharat Jodo Yatra: Opposition leaders in UP set to stay away, but PDP joins NC in accepting J&K invite

The Congress officially maintains that electoral gains are not central to the foot march, which has so far covered nearly 3,000 km over nine states, starting from Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu, and is currently on a nine-day break after entering Delhi.

Confirming her participation in the Yatra, Mufti tweeted: “I’ve been formally invited to join @RahulGandhi ji for his Bharat Jodo Yatra in Kashmir today. Salute his indomitable courage and I believe it is my duty to stand with someone who has the courage to challenge fascist forces. Will be joining him in his march towards a better India.”

At Srinagar, Venugopal told reporters, “I am very much happy to say that Farooq Abdullahji, Omar Abdullahji, Mehbooba Muftiji, (Yousuf) Tarigamiji (CPI-M leader), are all ready to join the Yatra. This is one of the happiest moments for all of us. And not just here, everywhere, all like-minded people who do not believe in the divisive politics of the BJP and the Union government are joining this Yatra.”

The Congress has been sending letters, signed by Rahul, to leaders of various parties, inviting them to join the Yatra to “talk and listen in freedom”. In the letter sent to several MPs, Rahul describes them as the “backbone” of the country’s democratic structure. “You are a critical part of this conversation, I would very much like to listen to you, and share our perspectives. It does not matter whether we agree or disagree,” he wrote.

In politically crucial Uttar Pradesh, which the Yatra enters on January 3, those invited by Rahul include Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, BSP supremo Mayawati and Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) president Jayant Chaudhary.

However, most fellow Opposition leaders in the state have expressed their inability to join the march, citing prior engagements. On Monday, responding to questions by reporters on whether he plans to accept Rahul’s invite, Akhilesh raised the crucial question at the heart of all such Opposition unity efforts. “Humari bhavna hai ki Bharat jodo, humari bhavna hai uske saath. Lekin sawal ye hai ki BJP hatayega kaun (We too believe in uniting India, we are in agreement on it. But the question is who will tackle the BJP)?”

While Akhilesh’s response dodged a direct reply on whether he would be joining the Yatra, SP spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary told The Indian Express it was “unlikely”, and that the SP chief has “party programmes lined up”. He also stressed that the party had not received any formal invite, a position taken by the BSP as well.

The RLD, an ally of the SP, also claimed its chief Chaudhary would be unable to make it due to “pre-decided engagements” of the party.

At the same time, the two parties held out the possibility of sending a representative, saying a decision had not been taken on the matter.

The Congress is known to have also sent invites to Akhilesh’s uncle and now SP MLA Shivpal Singh Yadav, as well as Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party chief (SBSP) Om Prakash Rajbhar. But the SBSP may also take its cue from the SP, the biggest opposition party in UP.

Among other parties to have been sent the invite by Rahul, the Trinamool Congress is set to keep away, unwilling to be seen as endorsing the Congress’s pre-eminence in the Opposition bloc ahead of the 2024 general elections.

Mufti’s decision to join the Yatra is not surprising as the PDP leader who is a fierce critic of the BJP has expressed her support for the march several times. “For us, it is beyond politics, beyond political partisanship,” senior PDP leader Naeem Akhtar told The Indian Express. “When somebody is talking about the idea of India that Kashmir had acceded to — unfortunately that idea of India has been trampled, constitutionally, politically and socially — for us, it is very important that that idea of India is resurrected. Whosoever does that, we have no choice but to stand by him.”

With the National Conference’s Farooq Abdullah earlier announcing he would join the Yatra, it is a clear assertion by the two major J&K parties against the Modi government’s policies vis-a-vis Kashmir.

For the two parties, the decision is also a shield against the BJP’s attempt to “push us into a separatist corner”. “The BJP wanted to reduce us to a separatist party,” said a political leader. “This is our way to safeguard our identity.”

Come elections in J&K though, the decision of the PDP and NC to join the Yatra might not matter much. While a Congress-NC alliance is still possible, the party can’t be seen on the same page as the PDP, which has taken a strong position against the abrogation of Article 370. Any truck with the PDP would further erode the Congress’s support in the Jammu region, helping the BJP.

So far, all the non-Congress leaders who have joined the Yatra have belonged to the party’s allies, including the DMK in Tamil Nadu, and the NCP and Shiv Sena in Maharashtra.

Apart from politicians, the Congress has invited prominent personalities from various walks of life to join the Yatra. Among those who responded and walked beside Rahul include former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan, vocalist T M Krishna, former finance secretary Arvind Mayaram, actor and filmmaker-turned-Tamil Nadu politician Kamal Haasan, and several film personalities.