New Delhi: The Congress is set to hold a big event at Rajghat, Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial on June 1 to reclaim the legacy of the leader. The event will mark the culmination of the over 1200 km long yatra that party workers had started from Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad two months ago.
“We all will pay our homage to Gandhiji on June 1,” Delhi Congress chief Anil Chaudhary told ETV Bharat. The yatra was welcomed last evening at the Delhi-Haryana border by Chaudhary along with Rajya Sabha member Deepender Hooda. On Monday morning, the police first stopped the procession at Chhatarpur area but later allowed the yatra onwards.
“We have walked for 55 days. The police saw that the Seva Dal workers are disciplined and peaceful people. Hence, they allowed the yatra,” Seva Dal chief Lalji Desai told ETV Bharat. “We are carrying Gandhiji’s message. He fought the British,” said Desai. In the morning, Desai had compared the detention with fascism.
The yatra, dubbed Azadi Gaurav Yatra, is an attempt of the Congress to reclaim the legacy of the freedom fighter in poll-bound Gujarat, which has assembly elections later this year, said party insiders. The plan also aims to expose the BJP, they said. For that purpose, the yatra passed through Rajasthan, where assembly polls are due in 2023 and Haryana, which is also ruled by the BJP and will go to polls in 2024, along with the Lok Sabha polls.
“The trip allowed the party to reconnect with the masses and propagate the ideals of Gandhiji,” said Gujarat Congress chief Jagdish Thakor. He has already asked the party workers to organise a big event at Rajghat which several senior leaders are likely to attend. Through the yatra, the grand old party is reviving the spirit of the freedom movement when it fought the British to win Independence for the country, said Indian Youth Congress chief BV Srinivas. The Congress, he said, is the party of the common people and will remain that way.
Congress leaders said they need to reclaim Gandhiji today as the BJP often tries to appropriate the legacy of the Mahatma as well as Sardar Patel, who also belonged to Gujarat. “The yatra’s response has been good. People welcomed us all through the route. Party spokespersons like Pawan Kheda and Alka Lamba also walked along in part,” Desai said.
