In a course correction, the Congress is planning to cut short its Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. The party has already finalised its plan to curtail the Uttar Pradesh leg of the journey by four days. Earlier, it had planned on spending 11 days in the State; it would now be only seven days, with the yatra giving the western districts a miss.
According to sources, the decision was prompted by party president Mallikarjun Kharge, who urged senior leader Rahul Gandhi, who is leading the yatra, to return to the capital at the earliest, in time for the Lok Sabha polls.
Mr. Kharge was of the opinion that the entire Congress machinery was far too focused on the yatra rather than preparing for the 2024 electoral battle, sources said. Party’s general secretary (Organisation) K.C. Venugopal and general secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh have been following Mr. Gandhi for most of the yatra, putting electoral preparations out of gear.
The second edition of the successful Bharat Jodo Yatra has not generated similar enthusiasm and has encountered several speedbreakers. Just before the yatra’s entry in West Bengal, seat-sharing talks with Trinamool Congress fell through with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s announcement that her party will contest the Lok Sabha polls alone. Before beginning the Bihar leg of the yatra, JD(U) president and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who was one of the founder members of the anti-BJP INDIA bloc, broke ties with the alliance to return to the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
In Uttar Pradesh, too, former INDIA bloc ally Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) switched over to NDA, forcing the Congress to realign its route, avoiding the western districts. The yatra that was to culminate on March 20 will now end around March 10, giving Mr. Gandhi and the party machinery more time for the Lok Sabha campaign.
