Congress's Rahul Gandhi led his Bharat Jodo Yatra into Jammu and Kashmir today, underscoring that it was a "homecoming" for him. "I am going back to my roots, I know the suffering of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and come to you with a bowed head," he said, addressing the people.
"I am here to learn from you. Each one of you have suffered a lot and I want to humbly say that I am here to share your grief," he said.
Drawing a parallel between the Bharat Jodo Yatra and the one undertaken by Vedic scholar Shankaracharya in the 8th Century, Mr Gandhi said in course of it, he found that though BJP and RSS have spread hatred, it "does not" run deep.
"I earlier thought it ran deep but it does not and is mainly seen on television," Mr Gandhi added.
The Yatra was given a grand welcome at Madopur, with a cultural programme that included music and dance.
National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah was at the spot to receive Mr Gandhi. The 85-year-old struck an emotive note, saying, "Before I close my eyes, I want to see my secular Hindustan again where everyone is respected."
There were a number of senior leaders from Congress, allies and regional parties, who are expected to attend the Yatra's grand finale in Srinagar on January 30, the death anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
AdvertisementBesides Mr Abdullah, Congress's Jairam Ramesh, Ashok Gehlot, Digvijay Singh, were there. So were Shiv Sena's Sanjay Raut, Dogra Swabhiman Sangathan Party and Awami National Conference leader Muzaffar Shah. The Congress has invited 21 opposition parties to attend the programme on January 30.
Jammu and Kashmir is the last leg of the yatra, which started 125 days ago in September from Kanyakumari.
