The AICC brass and state Congress leaders held a meeting to discuss the Opposition party’s plans for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. The party has finalized the route for Rahul Gandhi’s Yatra-2, renaming it as ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’ and including the sensitive border state of Arunachal Pradesh as part of its 15-state yatra, covering 100 Lok Sabha seats. The Congress has extended invitations to the leaders of the party’s allies (now INDIA bloc) to participate in the yatra.
Detailing the route of Gandhi’s 66-day, 6,713 km, Yatra-2 from Imphal which will begin on April 14, mostly by bus with short stretches of walk in city areas, AICC communication in-charge Jairam Ramesh said among other states, Yatra-2 will travel in (alliance-seeking states ) Uttar Pradesh 1,074 km in 11 days in 20 districts; in West Bengal 523 km in five days in seven districts; in Bihar 425 km in 4 days, in 7 districts; in Jharkhand 804 km in 8 days in 13 districts; and in Maharashtra 480 km in 6 days in 5 districts.
Among the states it lost in the recent elections, Yatra-2 will spend 5 days in Chhattisgarh, 7 days in Madhya Pradesh, and a day in two border districts of Rajasthan and 5 days in Gujarat.
Ramesh said in view of the ‘unanimous view’ of the state Congress leaders that ‘the brand and value’ of the first yatra should be retained, Yatra-2 has been renamed as ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’.
Earlier, addressing the presidents of the Pradesh Congress Committees (PCCs) and leaders of the Congress Legislature Parties (CLPs), party president Mallikarjun Kharge urged the Congress leaders in the states to ensure internal unity against the BJP in the run-up to the Lok Sabha polls, diligent scrutiny of the voters’ list to guard against deletion of eligible voters, especially those belonging to the SC, ST, OBC and minority sections, and organisational mobilisation.
Readying the ground for serious seat-sharing talks with its allies, AICC’s National Alliance Committee on Thursday presented to Kharge the wish list of various PCCs it had gathered during earlier discussions, for the number of seats they wanted the Congress to contest from while exploring alliances with allies. It is said that many PCCs’ wishlists, typically, are big vis-a-vis what allies are prepared to shell out, thus setting the talks for a give-and-take exploration.
“The BJP is pushing emotive issues to cover up for the failures of its government in the last 10 years. They deliberately involve Congress in every issue. We have to unite and give a befitting reply to the lies, deceit and wrongdoings of the BJP on grassroots issues in front of the people,” Kharge said while requesting leaders not to indulge in infighting or loose talk in public. Calling for organisational ‘micro-management’ up to the booth-level he said: ‘One should also be vigilant against the deletion of SC, ST, OBC and minority voters. Local leaders should keep a continuous tab on that’.
