A Shot in the Arm for a Declining Congress While the biggest achievement of the Yatra was its ability to attract crowds and offer much-needed media mileage to the Congress, the padyatra, with Rahul Gandhi at the helm, also attracted support from other opposition parties and leaders. Congress ally-DMK chief and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin flagged off the Yatra at the beginning to show his support for the party and Gandhi. Actor-politician Kamal Haasan met Gandhi in January 2023 on the sidelines of the yatra and extended his support as well.
Maha Vikas Aghadi allies Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) voiced their support for the Yatra as NCP chief Sharad Pawar dubbed it “immensely useful” for the Congress. Only eight out of 21 opposition parties that were invited showed up at the closing ceremony of the Yatra in Srinagar on 30th January 2023. Leaders from DMK, Farooq Abdullah’s National Conference, Mehbooba Mufti’s Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), CPI, RSP, and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha attended the closing ceremony, whereas the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which was not invited, dismissed the Yatra by terming it of “no consequence” and did not take any part in it.
The Congress has been in a constant state of decline as it lost several elections at the national, state, and local levels. From 206 seats in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, the party was reduced to a mere one-fourth (52 seats) in the 2019 national elections. It lost elections in several states such as Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Gujarat, and Goa and lost governments in Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka due to internal factionalism and conflicts.
The party has been called out for its weak organisational structure and inactive leadership which has impacted its cadre on the ground and questioned its ability to present a credible opposition to the incumbent BJP government. As the party lost key state elections in 2022 including Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, and Gujarat, the Bharat Jodo Yatra was viewed in light of the benefits it will bring to the party before the crucial Lok Sabha fight in 2024. According to analysts, the Yatra has been beneficial so far as it provided the required boost to the Congress on the ground and somewhat reformed Rahul Gandhi’s image as an active leader.
It has been described as a foot march which saw the party’s top leadership walk hundreds of miles across different terrains and through varying weather conditions, attracting massive crowds wherever it went and is said to have added some energy to Congress leaders. Political observers also point out that in some ways the Yatra also contributed to reaffirming the Congress’ position as the principal opposition party to the BJP at the national level and to the rising band of regional political parties in different states.
Opposition Support for Gandhi’s Padyatra
A Shot in the Arm for a Declining Congress While the biggest achievement of the Yatra was its ability to attract crowds and offer much-needed media mileage to the Congress, the padyatra, with Rahul Gandhi at the helm, also attracted support from other opposition parties and leaders. Congress ally-DMK chief and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin flagged off the Yatra at the beginning to show his support for the party and Gandhi.
Actor-politician Kamal Haasan met Gandhi in January 2023 on the sidelines of the yatra and extended his support as well. Maha Vikas Aghadi allies Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) voiced their support for the Yatra as NCP chief Sharad Pawar dubbed it “immensely useful” for the Congress. Only eight out of 21 opposition parties that were invited showed up at the closing ceremony of the Yatra in Srinagar on 30th January 2023. Leaders from DMK, Farooq Abdullah’s National Conference, Mehbooba Mufti’s Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), CPI, RSP, and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha attended the closing ceremony, whereas the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which was not invited, dismissed the Yatra by terming it of “no consequence” and did not take any part in it.