Rahul Gandhi may visit Odisha to join Bharat Jodo Yatra

BHUBANESWAR: Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi is likely to visit Odisha and address the culmination of local Bharat Jodo Yatra in the State. He is likely to address a massive rally here in this connection in January, next year.The Yatra will start in the last week of October in Odisha to avoid a clash with BJD’s yearly padayatra, which starts from the Gandhi Jayanti day, October 2. The Congress Yatra will continue for around three months and cover 1,600 kms.

The rally will be a show of strength for the faction ridden Congress in the State. Sources said around one lakh workers from across the State will attend the rally to be addressed by Rahul. The former president of the Congress had last visited Odisha in February 2019 before the general elections, when he had addressed a rally at the Capital City.

The likely visit of Rahul to the State was discussed at a meeting of the heads of all frontal organisations of the party convened by president of the Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) Sarat Pattanayak on Tuesday. The meeting also discussed the expected route of the Yatra.

The Yatra is expected to start from Bhubaneswar, and will cover Cuttack, Jajpur, Bhadrak, Balasore, Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar, Sundargarh, Sambalpur, Balangir, Kalahandi, Nabarangpur, Koraput, Rayagada, Gajapati, Ganjam, Kandhamal and other districts. However, Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur, Malkangiri, Puri, Dhenkanal, Angul and Malkangiri districts have been left out.

However, leaving out so many districts from the Yatra has sparked resentment. Several coastal districts which are key to the organisational revival of the party have been left out from the route of the Yatra. Leaders from the left out districts are likely to meet the State leadership and demand a change in the route.