Bharat Jodo Yatra not an event but movement, says Jairam Ramesh

The Bharat Jodo Yatra is a medium to fight the divisive ideology of the BJP and the RSS and it is not an event but a movement that will continue Congress general secretary incharge of communication Jairam Ramesh said on ThursdayHitting out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi he alleged that the country is facing three major challenges social inequalities polarisation and political dictatorship These have been caused by the intention and policies of our prime minister Ramesh saidThe Rahul Gandhiled yatra which was joined by several people as it traversed through Shamli district will end its journey in the evening in the politically crucial state that sends 80 members to Lok Sabha and enter Haryana for a second time The former Congress chief was again seen wearing a white Tshirt that he has sported for much of the journeyPeople of the BJP say that Bharat is not broken then what is the need for a Bharat Jodo Yatra I would like to say that there are three major challenges before us growing social inequalities social polarisation and political dictatorship Ramesh said while addressing a press conference in Uncha village hereThese problems are being promoted by the intentions and policies of our prime minister and the RSS Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh The Bharat Jodo Yatra is being carried out to fight against the divisive ideology he saidRamesh a former Union minister apparently referring to Modis monthly radio address Mann ki Baat said that the KanyakumariKashmir Bharat Jodo Yatra is not mann ki baat ki yatra Gandhi listens more and speaks less he saidAlso read Bharat Jodo Yatra resumes journey in Uttar Pradesh expected to enter Haryana in eveningThe Bharat Jodo Yatra is not an opportunity for speeches People from various social groups including farmers dalits adivasis women and retired army personnel walk and meet with Gandhi who listens to their problems Ramesh saidThe yatra has been taken out to understand the concerns of the people and it is not an event but a movement and it will continue the Congress leader assertedHe claimed that today the country is witnessing a direct fight between two ideologies one represented by the BJP and the RSS and the other by the CongressElectoral politics is a different thing But the fight of ideologies will take several years because the poison of polarisation has reached everywhere in our society The poison of the RSS and the division are which the prime minister spreads everywhere Ramesh allegedThere has also been an attempt to trample our diversity in the last 10 years he said adding that these things will take time to be foughtThe Bharat Jodo Yatra which started from Kanyakumari on September 7 will end with the hoisting of the national flag by Gandhi in Srinagar on January 30 The march has so far covered nine states and one Union Territory Tamil Nadu Kerala Karnataka Andhra Pradesh Telangana Maharashtra Madhya Pradesh Rajasthan Haryana and DelhiThe yatra has invigorated Congress workers and the party will take the success of this march to the block district and state levels through Haath se Haath Jodo Yatras from January 26 to March 26 Ramesh saidSeveral workers of the RLD Rashtriya Lok Dal joined us on Wednesday in Baghpat We can say that we have the support of the Samajwadi Party SP and the Bahujan Samaj Party BSP he saidThe yatra is not for uniting the opposition but the unity of the opposition can be an outcome of the yatra If the Congress is strengthened the unity of the opposition will be strengthened A weak Congress cannot strengthen the unity of the opposition he saidLocal leaders and activists including RLD Shamli district unit chief Rampal Dhama whose party is an alliance partner of the SP in Uttar Pradesh joined the yatra in Baghpat on WednesdayRLD national secretary Raj Kumar Sangwan told PTI in Baghpat on Thursday that party workers are welcoming the Bharat Jodo Yatra wherever its going in the stateParty regional head Chaudhary Yogendra Singh said workers under the leadership of Shamli district president Wajid Ali welcomed the yatra in the district and joined itSP president Akhilesh Yadav and BSP supremo Mayawat have extended moral support to the yatraTaking a jibe at the state of roads in Baghpat and Shamli in BJPruled Uttar Pradesh Ramesh said In the last two days the challenge for us was not cold weather it was the bad roads I have not seen such bad roads anywhere The leaders should come here and see the state of roadsOf the 200 Bharat yatris who have been part of the march from Kanyakumari 23 are from Uttar Pradesh he saidThursday marked the 111th day of the Bharat Joda Yatra which has covered 2300 km and 94 districts so farThe yatra resumed its journey around 6 am on Thursday after halting for the night at Ailum village here with scores of people carrying the Tricolour marching through the hinterland despite biting coldThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its 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