News Bihar Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge join first I.N.D.I.A bloc rally in Patna ahead of Lok Sabha elections

Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge join first I.N.D.I.A bloc rally in Patna ahead of Lok Sabha elections

Earlier in the day, Gandhi and Kharge on Sunday arrived in the Bihar capital to attend the 'Jan Vishwas Rally', which is being seen as a virtual show of strength for the opposition I.N.D.I.A bloc ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.

Rahul Gandhi with Tejashwi Yadav Image Source : PTIRahul Gandhi with Tejashwi Yadav

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who is leading the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Madhya Pradesh currently joined the Rashtriya Janta Dal (RJD) rally in Patna. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge also attended the rally in Bihar.

The 'Jan Vishwas Rally', which has been organised by the RJD, is being attended by top leaders including its national president Lalu Prasad, his son and heir apparent Tejashwi Yadav, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and CPI general secretary D Raja. Samajwadi Party president and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav has also reached the venue.

The historic Gandhi Maidan, a sprawling public ground situated in the heart of the city, is choc a bloc with supporters of the 'Mahagathbandhan', a coalition comprising Congress, RJD and Left parties, which was sharing power in the state until the abrupt exit of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who heads the JD(U), recently.

The 'Jan Vishwas Rally' is being seen as a culmination of 'Jan Vishwas Yatra', a state-wide tour undertaken by Tejashwi Yadav, who lost his job as the deputy chief minister and embarked upon a drive to galvanise the public in favour of his commitment to job creation.

"Naukri matlab Tejashwi (Tejashwi means jobs)" is one of the slogans that reverberated across the venue of the rally.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh asserted that the yatra will take a half-day break. Meanwhile, the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra entered its 50th day.

Informing about the change in social media, he said, "Today is the 50th day of Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, there has been a slight change because Rahul Gandhi has to go to Patna to attend an opposition rally." 

"This morning, he will have an interaction on the Agniveer scheme. In the afternoon, there will be no Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. Tomorrow, we will resume the yatra from Shivpuri," he added.

The RJD, a strong regional player in Bihar, and an old Congress ally, is hosting the March 3 rally to send a message across the country. Recently, when Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra had passed through Bihar, Tejashwi Yadav had joined the march and drove around the former Congress chief in an open jeep.

Just a day earlier, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra resumed from Rajasthan's Dholpur district on Saturday afternoon. 

The east-to-west Manipur-Mumbai yatra, which entered Rajasthan on Sunday, is scheduled to traverse 6,700 kilometres through 15 states. It aims at highlighting the message of "nyay (justice)" while meeting common people on the way.

ALSO READ | Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra to enter Madhya Pradesh on March 2

ASLO READ | Rahul Gandhi resumes Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra from UP's Moradabad with Priyanka Gandhi Vadra