On Friday, local Kashmiri people staged a protest against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi as he started his Bharat Jodo Yatra from Hatli Morh in the border district of Jammu and Kashmir. “Go Back Rahul Gandhi,” “Rahul Gandhi Hay Hay,” they yelled as they criticized the Bharat Jodo Yatra and called it a sham. The protests were held at Lal Chowk in Kashmir.
“The Bharat Jodo Yatra led by Rahul Gandhi is a political stunt. It is not for people. It is for their party which is on the verge of dissolution. Rahul Gandhi is conducting Yatra for his benefit and he has nothing to do with connecting people,” one of the protesters said at Lal Chowk. He also stated that Congress has done nothing for Kashmir and now has come here to connect with people.
“It is Congress who has divided Bharat in the past. With what right is Rahul Gandhi coming here to meet Kashmiri people? He has done nothing for the state. Where was he when lakhs of Kashmiris were dying? This is all sham, a lie,” he continued.
Local Kashmiris staged a protest at Lal Chowk Srinagar J&K against Rahul Gandhi. Asks him to go back! #RahulGandhiGoBack pic.twitter.com/cWZuBHOlVh
— Sajid Yousuf Shah (@TheSkandar) January 20, 2023
Meanwhile, another protester reiterated that Bharat was divided by Congress. “Bharat ko inhi logo ne toda hai. Ab kyu aye hai jodne (These are the ones who have created a divide in Bharat. Why have they come now),” he said.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi began his Bharat Jodo Yatra from Hatli Morh in this border area of Jammu and Kashmir. He was joined by other major leaders, including Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut. According to the reports, the yatra was supposed to begin at 7 am but was delayed by an hour and fifteen minutes owing to winter rains. Several Congress leaders followed Gandhi on the last stage of the Bharat Jodo Yatra, including Jammu and Kashmir unit president Vikar Rasool Wani and his predecessor G A Mir.
Gandhi targeted the BJP and the RSS during his march, blatantly accusing them of fostering enmity and executing policies that according to him, have resulted in widespread unemployment. He alleged that the government engaged in mass thievery by diverting people’s attention and subsequently plundering them.
In his speech, Gandhi cited hostility, violence, unemployment, and price increases as the major concerns plaguing the country, while criticizing the media for failing to spotlight them. “I am going back to my roots, I know the suffering of the people of J-K and come to you with a bowed head. My ancestors belonged to this land, I feel I am returning home,” he further said.
Meanwhile, National Conference president Farooq Abdullah and top party leaders travelled by bus from his Jammu residence to Kathua to greet Rahul Gandhi at Jammu and Kashmir’s admittance point. Farooq Abdullah, who welcomed him to the Union Territory, drew a link between Shankaracharya and Gandhi.
“Many years ago, Shankaracharya traveled from Kanyakumari to Kashmir on a yatra. And you’re doing it today,” the MP stated during a rally. He claimed that today’s India is not Ram’s Bharat or Gandhi’s Hindustan due to religious divisions. “If we work together, we will be able to overcome today’s hate,” he remarked.
Earlier, the Congress party had said that Rahul Gandhi will not hoist India’s national flag at Lal Chowk. The party believes that unfurling the Tricolor at the Lal Chowk in Kashmir is part of ‘the RSS agenda’. The yatra is scheduled to culminate at Srinagar with Rahul Gandhi hoisting the national flag at the party headquarters on January 30.
