New Delhi: An FIR has been lodged in the Jorhat Sadar police station in Assam against the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra being led by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and its chief organiser KB Byju for allegedly deviating from the route that had been allowed in Jorhat town.
The FIR said the yatra did not follow the district administration’s norms and violated road safety rules.
The FIR against the yatra came close on the heels of Rahul Gandhi criticising the Himanta Biswa Sarma’s BJP government, alleging that it was “perhaps the most corrupt government in India.’’ Sarma retaliated by saying that it was the Gandhi family that was the most corrupt. In its bid to launch a mass outreach programme a few months ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha election, the east to west yatra was launched on January 14 from Manipur. It is likely to end in Mumbai on March 20 after travelling a distance of nearly 6,700 kms.
Addressing a public gathering at Gogamukh in Assam, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said the country was witnessing ideological battle with the RSS-BJP on the one side and the Congress on the other. He said that RSS-BJP were of the view that India should be governed from Delhi as they stand for one language, one leader. “All other languages like yours and Tamil and other states should be governed from Delhi. We are opposed to this. Assam cannot be ruled from Delhi, Assam will be governed from Assam,’’ he said.
Hitting out again at Assam chief minister without naming him, Rahul Gandhi alleged that he was the most corrupt chief minister of India who can offer a lesson or two to other chief ministers of BJP. He claimed that Assam chief minister was working on express orders of Delhi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Defending the reason behind launching Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra from Manipur, he said that for the first time in the history of the country Manipur has been witnessing arson, damage to property, violence, hatred which all amounts to civil war. However, the Prime Minister did not visit Manipur till today, he said that Narendra Modi had divided Manipur.
The Congress leader said that people, particularly youth, who met him during the yatra were in unison highlighting the problem posed by widespread employment. He alleged that BJP was working for two or three big industrialists. While it is Adani in Delhi, there is no need for Adani in Assam as the chief minister in Assam was indulging in corruption all the time, he alleged.
Meanwhile, in Majuli Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh on Friday claimed that the party’s first Bharat Jodo Yatra from south to north had not faced as many problems while passing through BJP-ruled states as the second one is encountering in Assam.
Ramesh asserted that no power can prevent the ongoing ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’ from proceeding with its scheduled itinerary in Assam where the yatra entered its second day.
Rahul Gandhi undertook the first ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ in 2022-23 from Kanyakumari to Kashmir. The ongoing Yatra is also being led by Gandhi.
Ramesh pointed out that the first Yatra had passed through then BJP-ruled states Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, and the Congress had criticised the chief ministers and governments there.
“But it is for the first time that within 24 hours, the CM has been rattled. We are being threatened with FIR and imprisonment. People are being prevented from joining the Yatra,” he claimed.
Ramesh said the yatra will continue through the state till January 25, travelling a total of 833 km across 17 districts.
He said the Yatra will be entering Arunachal Pradesh on Saturday and resume in Assam the next day with a public rally at Kaliabor on Sunday, which will also be attended by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.