Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah, Mehbooba Mufti to join Bharat Jodo Yatra: Congress
Three former Jammu and Kashmir chief ministers Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah, and Mehbooba Mufti, along with CPI(M) leader MY Tarigami, will participate in Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra that would enter the UT on January 22, senior Congress leader KC Venugopal said on Tuesday.
While chairing a high-level meeting in Srinagar, Venugopal, who is also AICC general secretary, said Rahul will hoist the national flag in Kashmir at the end of his 3,500km-long yatra that began from Tamil Nadu’s Kanyakumari on September 7.
Mehbooba also took to Twitter to announce, “I’ve been formally invited to join @RahulGandhi ji for his Bharat Jodo Yatra in Kashmir today. Salute his indomitable courage & I believe it is my duty to stand with someone who has the courage to challenge fascist forces. Will be joining him in his march towards a better India.”
The Congress leadership has in the last two days held a series of meetings in J&K to make the last leg of the Bharat Jodo Yatra successful.
Venugopal, along senior J&K Congress leaders, also met Jammu and Kashmir lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha and apprised him of the yatra plans in UT.
Through Rahul’s yatra, the Congress leadership is trying to revive the party cadres in J&K ahead of assembly elections that could be held next year.
The J&K Congress had suffered major setback when former chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad left the party to form his own political party, Democratic Azad Party. Many Congress leaders feel this yatra is an opportunity to revitalise the party that had won 12 assembly seats in the 2014 assembly elections.
“We came to Jammu and Kashmir to review the Bharat Jodo Yatra preparations. Yesterday, we had an interaction with Jammu people. Today, we had a meeting with people in Kashmir. It is going to be a great programme throughout Jammu and Kashmir,” Venugopal, who was accompanied by top Congress leaders of J&K, said.
He said the Congress has a special affection with people of J&K and the entire country is looking forward to the yatra’s last stretch. “LG Sinha has offered all sorts of cooperation for this yatra,” he added. “I am happy to announce that all who don’t agree with divisive agenda of the BJP are ready to join this yatra. The impact of yatra is increasing by each passing day,” Venugopal said.
Congress spokesperson Amir Sheikh said people are eager to participate in the yatra. “We are hopeful that the government will give smooth passage to this march,” he added.
The Congress leadership is planning a mega rally in Banihal before the yatra enters Kashmir valley. However, security of the yatra will be the main concern for the agencies as it will have to pass through national highway that had seen many attacks in the past.
