Rediff.com« Back to articlePrint this article

Priyanka Gandhi, family to join Rahul's yatra in MP on Wednesday

November 23, 2022 00:16 IST

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and her family members will reach Burhanpur in Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday evening hours after the Bharat Jodo Yatra led by her brother Rahul Gandhi enters the state, a senior party leader said on Tuesday.

IMAGE: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi addresses the public meeting for the upcoming Gujarat Assembly elections, in Rajkot, November 21, 2022. Photograph: ANI Photo

She will participate in the yatra between Burhanpur and Indore on November 24 and 25, MP Congress president Kamal Nath said.

 

This is the first time Priyanka Gandhi, the general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh, will be participating in the yatra, set out for Kashmir from Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu on September 7.

Nath said the foot march will enter the central Indian state from Burhanpur district on Wednesday morning.

"Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi will reach Burhanpur on Wednesday evening with her family members. She will participate in the yatra between Burhanpur and Indore on November 24-25," he told reporters.

The yatra will cover a distance of 380 km in Madhya Pradesh before proceeding to Rajasthan, Nath added.

Earlier in the day, Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh tweeted in Hindi about Priyanka joining the foot march.

"Priyanka Gandhi will join the yatra there and participate for four days," he said.

Nath said the Madhya Pradesh leg of the yatra will be most successful.

The cross-country yatra has traversed through Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Maharashtra so far.

Meanwhile, posters of Rahul Gandhi dotted Bodarli village in Burhanpur district, the starting point of the Yatra's Madhya Pradesh sojourn.

The meeting ground in this village, with a population of 6,000, is decorated with banana leaves. The region is known for banana cultivation.

Nath said the yatra was taken out aiming to unite society and people are enthused.

"Rahul Gandhi embarked on the yatra to protect the country's constitution, democracy, culture, and the people. During the Madhya Pradesh leg of the yatra, every day will be a new day as every section of the society is associated with it. Each day of the yatra will be dedicated to special sections of society," he said.

According to Nath, the Yatra will have separate themes dedicated to sections such as the common people, freedom fighters, armed forces personnel, farmers, labourers, divyangs, artists, players, senior citizens, and eminent persons among others.

Queried on an anonymous letter, referring to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and threatening to kill Rahul Gandhi and Kamal Nath, the latter said he was not bothered by such threats.

"The matter is investigated by the police. They will take necessary action," he added.

The letter, which was received at a sweets and snacks shop in Indore last week, had also threatened bomb blasts in Indore city if the Yatra halts at Khalsa Stadium on November 28.

The venue of the night halt of the yatra was changed to Chimanbagh Maidan on an application made by Congress, an Indore Police official said on Tuesday.

Senior Congress leaders, including Digvijaya Singh, Arun Yadav, Govind Singh, and MLAs of the party have reached Burhanpur.

© Copyright 2024 PTI. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of PTI content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent.