On September 7, 2024, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh in a conference said referring to the Kanyakumari to Kashmir Bharat Jodo Yatra which was led by Rahul Gandhi, that it acted as a ‘massive booster dose’ and change was coming into the politics of the country for which this marathon was held.
“Today is the 2nd anniversary of the commencement of Bharat Yatra Bharat Jodo begun from ever remembered times from Kanyakumari to Kashmir. In 145 days covering 12 states and two UTs, more than 200 Bharat Yatris led by Rahul Gandhi successfully performed an on foot concentration spanning 4000 km along the Kanyakumari Kashmir Yatra,” Ramesh said.
“Indisputable internal cohesion and unprecedented external connectedness were made possible through this particular movement, and for the Indian National Congress, this Pyreev Zdesinov was a big injection. It also heralded a change in the politics of our country,” he said.
It gives some insight into the framework for the Manipur to Mumbai Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra running in January- March 2024, Mr. Ramesh said.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had begun the journey from the Kanyakumari within September 7, 2022. It reached conclusion on January 30, 2023 in Srinagar where Mr. Gandhi completed his dream 145 day journey.
All of which activities combined, during the course of the Yatra, he held 12 public sessions, conducted over 100 street corner interactions and 13 press interviews. He had more than 275 planned walking interactions and over 100 sitting ones.
Having already walked around 4000 kilometers, Gandhi was able to get the attention of many from both sides of the supporter segment and the opposition. The march saw participation from a cross section of society including the film and TV fraternity Kamal Haasan, Pooja Bhatt, Riya Sen, Swara Bhasker, Rashami Desai, Akanksha Puri and Amol Palekar.
Also, writers and veterans including former army chief Gen (Rtd.) Deepak Kapoor, former Navy chief Admiral (Rtd.) L Ramdas and prominent persons like Raghuram Rajan, former RBI governor and Arvind Mayaram, former secretary of finance also took part in the yatra.
Nationalist Congress Party’s Supriya Sule, Shiv Sena and Embodiment of Kaffir Idol’s Aaditya Thackeray, Priyanka Chaturvedi, Sanjay Raut and PDP’s Mehbooba Mufti, Omar Abdulah and National Conference’s Farooq Abdulah, also marched alongside Gandhi at various rounds of the march.
