New Delhi: Buoyed by the huge public response to the Bharat Jodo Yatra that will end in January 2023, the Congress has started preparing for the next nationwide mass contact program dubbed as “hath se hath jodo.”
AICC general secretary in charge of organisation KC Venugopal has asked all the general secretaries, state unit chiefs, and legislative party leaders in assemblies to attend a meeting on December 23 to work out details of the new program which will be launched on January 26 and end in March. According to party insiders, the coming Plenary Session in February and the organisation revamp may also be discussed during the conclave.
“The south to north yatra has been successful in spreading the message of social harmony and highlighting the failures of the central government. The hath se hath jodo campaign will further spread that message and sustain the momentum,” AICC general secretary in charge of Madhya Pradesh JP Agarwal told ETV Bharat.
“Later in 2023, there will be a west-to-east nationwide yatra. All this will create a mood in favour of the Congress ahead of the 2024 national elections. We are an old party and have experience in making policies for the good of the country. The Congress is always in election mode. I am sure we would be able to form the next government,” he said.
Also read: Rahul to spend 8 days in J&K for Bharat Jodo Yatra: Congress State incharge Rajni Patil
The yatra which is in Rajasthan would complete 100 days on December 16 and would enter Delhi on December 24 where it would stay for two days before moving on to western Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab and finally to Jammu and Kashmir. “The yatra would be given a rousing welcome in Delhi,” said Agarwal.
Rahul Gandhi, who is leading the yatra, is likely to hoist the national flag at the iconic Lal Chowk in Srinagar around Republic Day. "We plan to end the yatra on January 26 but the flag hoisting in Srinagar could be around that date depending upon the situation. The new campaign will begin from January 26,” said Congress communications in-charge Jairam Ramesh.
During the new campaign, the Congress plans to take the yatra's message of social cohesion down to the block level, hoist the national flag, conduct bike rallies to rope in the youth and present a charge sheet against the central government. The party also hopes to hold rallies and conventions at the assembly level to amplify its message. At the culmination of the ‘hath se hath jodo’ campaign, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra led-women marches will be taken out in all the states to mobilize half the electorate.
The yatra would take a break for a few days in the national capital where some repair works need to be carried out in the containers which have served as accommodation for the 130-odd Bharat Yatris that have accompanied Rahul Gandhi since September 7. The initial number of Bharat Yatris was 120 but more people joined the yatra as it progressed towards the north, said party functionaries.
