Bharatiya Janata Party president Rajnath Singh embarked on the second leg of his five-week Bharat Suraksha Yatra on Thursday, after offering prayers at the Tapovan temple.

Singh resumed the yatra after a two-day gap, during which he visited Meerut, where 36 people died in an accident on
April 10.

During the second leg of the yatra, Singh will travel through naxal-affected areas of Jharkand, before entering
Bihar. After stopping for the night at Gaya in Bihar, he will proceed to Patna enroute Gopalganj in North Bihar, where the second leg of his journey will conclude.

The yatra began from Bhubaneshwar on April 6 and passed through forest and hilly terrains of Orissa, Chhattisgarh and
Jharkand. Throughout the journey, the BJP chief addressed over 50 roadside public meetings touching on issues like inflation, naxal violence, religious conversions and Centre's policy of 'minority appeasement'.

Braving hot weather, people in large numbers turned up for his roadside meetings, where he was welcomed in traditional tribal style with dances and beating of drums. Throughout the route, security was very tight and armed commandoes escorted the cavalcade, as it passed through the worst ultra-left affected areas of Jharkand and Bihar.

Complete coverage: The BJP's twin yatras