NEW DELHI: The Congress reiterated that the results of the upcoming assembly elections in the three northeastern states of Tripura, megalaya and Nagaland have no relation to the recently ended party Bharat Jodo Yatra (BJY).
The Congress secretary general in charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, has categorically stated that the Bharat Jodo Yatra has nothing to do with elections.
Speaking to media on Saturday, he said, “These three state elections happen to be coming up now.”
He was speaking in Shillong after the launch of the party’s election manifesto for Meghalaya which will go to the polls on February 27 alongside Nagaland. Tripura will face elections on February 16. The counting of votes for all three elections will take place on March 2. These three states are the first to go to the polls after the BJY concluded on Jan. 30.
Asked whether the tenure in these three states would be a true reflection of the success of Bharat Jodo Yatra, Ramesh said the foot march was unrelated to the recently held elections in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat as well.
The Rajya Sabha MP said, “I did not believe that the Bharat Jodo Yatra was responsible for our victory in Himachal Pradesh. Much less do I believe that Bharat Jodo Yatra was responsible for our very disappointing performance in Gujarat. Because from day one we have stated that the Bharat Jodo Yatra is an ideological yatra. It is not an electoral yatra. It is a political yatra but not related to elections. That’s why we started the ‘Haath se Haath Jodo’ campaign after the Bharat Jodo Yatra.”
Ramesh explained that the Bharat Jodo Yatra was to deal with the ideology of Congress and confront and fight the ideology of BJP and RSS. “The three ideologies we oppose are economic inequality, social polarization and political dictatorship,” he said.
The Congress media chief said he would not link the results – favorable or not – to the 4,000-odd km yatra from Kanyakumari to Srinagar, led by Rahul Gandhi.
“So, if we do right, I won’t take any credit for Bharat Jodo Yatra, I assure you. If we do wrong, I’m sure you all will say that Bharat Jodo Yatra ka kya faayda? It is se koi faayda nahin hua. (What was the use of Bharat Jodo Yatra. It was not helpful.) This too will be a wrong view. The achievements of the Bharat Jodo Yatra have to be seen in the perspective of five to ten years. It is a long-term ideological battle. That is why we are doing the Bharat Jodo Yatra. It’s not an event,” she said.
Stating that the Bharat Jodo Yatra was “very successful”, Ramesh revealed the party’s plan for a march from west to east. “We are now thinking about a west to east yatra, the details of which are still being worked out. This was a south to north yatra. Such a yatra from West to East is being contemplated, because we believe that the biggest threat to India comes from the Prime Minister’s policies of BJP or RSS which divides Indian society and does not unite Indian society,” he said .
Opinions differ on the result of the BJY and Himachal survey
However, there appears to be a difference of opinion regarding the Bharat Jodo Yatra and its relation to elections. The results of Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat were declared on 8 December. While the Congress defeated the BJP in Himachal Pradesh, the BJP recorded a historic victory in Gujarat.
What Ramesh said about the yatra’s relationship with Himachal Pradesh’s election result contrasted with the views of Congressman Rajya Sabha in charge of elections in hill state Rajeev Shukla. The latter had claimed that the party had registered victory in the state because of the yatra.
The yatra passed through Himachal Pradesh long after the results were announced. He didn’t go to Gujarat.
Congress Manifesto for Meghalaya
Declaring the manifesto, Ramesh said it has 14 big promises. “Every year we will present a report to the population of Meghalaya, giving a report card of the state of implementation of each of the promises we have made”.
The party has made five major pledges which include empowering women by donating Rs 3,000 to every BPL single mother as 41% of women live alone; I work for every family; Meghalaya without power outages and Meghalaya without corruption.
The Rajya Sabha MP said the upcoming Meghalaya elections were a watershed for the party. “The Congress party is fighting against four clouds: the cloud of corruption, the cloud of unemployment, the cloud of Meghalaya’s identity destruction and finally the cloud of an unholy alliance between the BJP, NPP, UDP and TMC. All claim to fight independently. But remember my words: at the first opportunity they will jump into bed together, ”he claimed.
The Congress secretary general in charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, has categorically stated that the Bharat Jodo Yatra has nothing to do with elections.
Speaking to media on Saturday, he said, “These three state elections happen to be coming up now.”
He was speaking in Shillong after the launch of the party’s election manifesto for Meghalaya which will go to the polls on February 27 alongside Nagaland. Tripura will face elections on February 16. The counting of votes for all three elections will take place on March 2. These three states are the first to go to the polls after the BJY concluded on Jan. 30.
Asked whether the tenure in these three states would be a true reflection of the success of Bharat Jodo Yatra, Ramesh said the foot march was unrelated to the recently held elections in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat as well.
The Rajya Sabha MP said, “I did not believe that the Bharat Jodo Yatra was responsible for our victory in Himachal Pradesh. Much less do I believe that Bharat Jodo Yatra was responsible for our very disappointing performance in Gujarat. Because from day one we have stated that the Bharat Jodo Yatra is an ideological yatra. It is not an electoral yatra. It is a political yatra but not related to elections. That’s why we started the ‘Haath se Haath Jodo’ campaign after the Bharat Jodo Yatra.”
Ramesh explained that the Bharat Jodo Yatra was to deal with the ideology of Congress and confront and fight the ideology of BJP and RSS. “The three ideologies we oppose are economic inequality, social polarization and political dictatorship,” he said.
The Congress media chief said he would not link the results – favorable or not – to the 4,000-odd km yatra from Kanyakumari to Srinagar, led by Rahul Gandhi.
“So, if we do right, I won’t take any credit for Bharat Jodo Yatra, I assure you. If we do wrong, I’m sure you all will say that Bharat Jodo Yatra ka kya faayda? It is se koi faayda nahin hua. (What was the use of Bharat Jodo Yatra. It was not helpful.) This too will be a wrong view. The achievements of the Bharat Jodo Yatra have to be seen in the perspective of five to ten years. It is a long-term ideological battle. That is why we are doing the Bharat Jodo Yatra. It’s not an event,” she said.
Stating that the Bharat Jodo Yatra was “very successful”, Ramesh revealed the party’s plan for a march from west to east. “We are now thinking about a west to east yatra, the details of which are still being worked out. This was a south to north yatra. Such a yatra from West to East is being contemplated, because we believe that the biggest threat to India comes from the Prime Minister’s policies of BJP or RSS which divides Indian society and does not unite Indian society,” he said .
Opinions differ on the result of the BJY and Himachal survey
However, there appears to be a difference of opinion regarding the Bharat Jodo Yatra and its relation to elections. The results of Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat were declared on 8 December. While the Congress defeated the BJP in Himachal Pradesh, the BJP recorded a historic victory in Gujarat.
What Ramesh said about the yatra’s relationship with Himachal Pradesh’s election result contrasted with the views of Congressman Rajya Sabha in charge of elections in hill state Rajeev Shukla. The latter had claimed that the party had registered victory in the state because of the yatra.
The yatra passed through Himachal Pradesh long after the results were announced. He didn’t go to Gujarat.
Congress Manifesto for Meghalaya
Declaring the manifesto, Ramesh said it has 14 big promises. “Every year we will present a report to the population of Meghalaya, giving a report card of the state of implementation of each of the promises we have made”.
The party has made five major pledges which include empowering women by donating Rs 3,000 to every BPL single mother as 41% of women live alone; I work for every family; Meghalaya without power outages and Meghalaya without corruption.
The Rajya Sabha MP said the upcoming Meghalaya elections were a watershed for the party. “The Congress party is fighting against four clouds: the cloud of corruption, the cloud of unemployment, the cloud of Meghalaya’s identity destruction and finally the cloud of an unholy alliance between the BJP, NPP, UDP and TMC. All claim to fight independently. But remember my words: at the first opportunity they will jump into bed together, ”he claimed.
Assembly polls: Congress, communists hampered development of Tripura, says PM Modi
