Staging a huge opposition to Rahul Gandhi led Congress party’s Bharat Jodo Yatra on Friday, local Kashmiri people called it a sham. The crowd held a protest against Congress leader Hatli Morh in the border district of Jammu and Kashmir. The crowd also yelled the slogans of “Go Back Rahul Gandhi,”and “Rahul Gandhi Hay Hay.” The protests were held at Lal Chowk in Kashmir.
Naming it a political stunt rather than a means of connecting with people, one of protesters at the Lal Chowk said, “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.”
Alleging that the grand-old-party has done nothing for Kashmir, he further remarked, “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 a sham, a lie.”
However, one more protester at the heart of Srinagar, reiterated that the country was divided only 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.
Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi set off his Bharat Jodo Yatra in the mountain state from Hatli Morh in the border area of the Union Territory.
Rahul Gandhi was joined by other major leaders, including Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut (Uddhav Thackeray faction). According to the reports, the yatra was set to commence at 7 am but was stalled by an hour owing to winter rains.
Senior Congress leaders also took part in the yatra’s last stage including state’s unit president Vikar Rasool Wani and his predecessor G A Mir.
Rahul Gandhi said “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.”
Meanwhile, National Conference president Farooq Abdullah and top party leaders traveled by bus from his Jammu residence to Kathua to meet and welcome Rahul Gandhi at Jammu and Kashmir’s entry point.
Outlying a link between Shankaracharya and Rahul Gandhi, Abdullah said, “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.”
Meanwhile, calling it a part of ‘the RSS agenda’, the Congress party had refused any chances of Rahul Gandhi hoisting India’s national flag at Lal Chowk. The yatra is scheduled to end at Srinagar with Rahul Gandhi hoisting the national flag at the party headquarters on January 30.
