Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is embarking on his second walkathon, ‘Bharat Nyay Yatra’, from Manipur in the north-east to Mumbai in western India, covering 14 states and 85 districts, beginning January 14. Rahul is undertaking this gruelling mission just after a year of the culmination of his first spirited walk, the Bharat Jodo Yatra, on January 30 in Kashmir.
The journey being undertaken just ahead of the crucial 2024 Lok Sabha elections has kindled speculation in political circles as well as interest in common people who are asking if this Rahul-yatra will be able to put a halt to Narendra Modi’s prime ministerial career, or will it be another futile exercise?
This scepticism owes primarily to the failure of the Congress satraps of Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh to utilise the spirit and gains of the previous Bharat Jodo Yatra to motivate people in these states to vote for the Congress. There is this lurking perception that the Nyay Yatra would meet the same fate.
Rahul Gandhi, during the Bharat Jodo Yatra, had raised the issues of economic disparities, polarization and dictatorship of the Modi government, but Bharat Nyay Yatra will focus on how Congress will secure social, economic and political justice for Indians. While these issues are associated with the lives of the common people, the Congress should be more proactive on them as they are the basic components of Mandal politics which has been virtually dictating political action and discourse in current-day India.
It ought to be remembered that the political contour and ethics of the region north of the Vindhyas are unlike what exists south of Vindhyas. The yatra will conclude on March 20, after covering 6,200 km, in Mumbai after traversing through Manipur, Nagaland, Assam, Meghalaya, West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra.
The Bharat Nyay Yatra has one difference from the Bharat Jodo Yatra: He will take to buses at some places during the course of the Nyay Yatra. Choosing Manipur for starting point also has wider implications. Notwithstanding the claim that the yatra will heal the wounds of the conflagration, it would also ensure that the people never forget the torture and genocide perpetrated on Manipur, how Hindutva forces treated Kuki and tribal.
Manipur witnessed one of the worst ethnic conflicts between the Kuki and Meitei communities, resulting in more than 300 deaths and leaving nearly 60,000 people homeless since the violence broke out on May 3. Unfortunately the people of Manipur did not get justice from Narendra Modi. Manipur, Meghalaya and Nagaland do not have too many Lok Sabha seats and are not electorally important. However, the message emanating is loud and clear: Modi and his mentor RSS have lost credibility.
Congress leaders claim that the Bharat Jodo Yatra was anchored in the pillars of “liberty, equality and fraternity”, while the Bharat Nyay Yatra is anchored in pillar of justice – social, economic and political. Raising these issues is a matter of tactic for the party and a warning to the BJP, especially to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “repeated assaults on the Constitution which will not be allowed to succeed.”
When Rahul Gandhi undertook Bharat Jodo Yatra, the INDIA bloc had not come in existence, but now it exists and has relevance and importance. Following the Congress defeats in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, in the greater interest of the Opposition, and for asserting the identity of the INDIA bloc, all constituents of INDIA bloc must participate in the Nyay Yatra. All parties voicing their commitment to social justice and Mandal Politics must also participate to consolidate the support base of the INDI-Alliance.
So far, Congress leaders have been reluctant to spell out their strategy, stating that details were being worked out. Congress communications head, Jairam Ramesh, said, “Rahul’s yatra is for justice – economic, social and political. Democracy has to be saved, social harmony has to be restored. People have to be empowered economically. Rahul will reassure the citizens of the country that the Congress is committed to deliver justice.”
The point is, as these issues have wider implications the Congress has decided to take everybody along. The Bharat Nyay Yatra will throw up a new set of young and committed cadres and local level leaders. The present Congress leaders have little connect with the grassroots compared to the strong army of committed RSS pracharaks. The INDI-Alliance is also up against the issue of “Ram Temple” and the talk is that “RSS and Modi have done great service to the Hindus”.
Therefore, the participation of all constituents of the INDIA bloc must be ensured – in the true tradition of “one for all, and all for one”. A commitment to Mandal politics will help counter RSS and Modi propaganda. As Rahul Gandhi has been reaching out to different sections of society – truck drivers, motor mechanics, carpenters, vegetable vendors, wholesale-sellers, agriculture workers and students – regional parties should join the Yatra in great numbers for a more meaningful defeat of fascist forces. (IPA Service)
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