Congress to launch Bharat Jodo Yatra part 2? Here's what Jairam Ramesh said

Congress MP and General Secretary in-charge Communications, Jairam Ramesh said on Sunday that the party is debating on Bharat Jodo Yatra 2.0. While talking to reporters, Ramesh said that a second phase of the Yatra is under active consideration although no firm decision has been taken as of now. 

"Bharat Jodo Yatra part 2 is under active consideration, (Although) no decision has been taken at all. Various ideas are being debated," Ramesh told per ANI. 

Bharat Jodo Yatra part 2 is Under active consideration. No decision taken at all. Various ideas being debated: Jairam Ramesh

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— ANI (@ANI)

Speaking to PTI, Ramesh said that the party is now considering an east-to-west yatra, probably from Pasighat in Arunachal Pradesh to Porbandar in Gujarat, and that its format could be a bit different. 

"There is a lot of enthusiasm and energy. I also think personally it is needed but the format of the east-to-west yatra may turn out to be different from the format of the south-to-north Bharat Jodo Yatra," Ramesh said. "It may not have such an elaborate infrastructure that was mobilised for the Bharat Jodo Yatra and may have less yatris," he added.

This comes as Congress claims that the Bharat Jodo Yatra has been immensely successful ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. During the 85th plenary session of Congress organised in Chhattisgarh's Nava Raipur, former party President Sonia Gandhi on Saturday said that she is glad to end her innings with the Bharat Jodo Yatra. She even called the march a turning point for Congress. "Our victories in 2004 and 2009 along with the able leadership of Dr Manmohan Singh gave me personal satisfaction but what gratifies me most is that my innings could conclude with the Bharat Jodo Yatra, a turning point for Congress," she said in her address. 

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Earlier this month, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar advised Rahul Gandhi not to stop and carry on the momentum gained with the Bharat Jodo Yatra. Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United) is planning to unite with Congress for the 2024 elections against the BJP. "I would like to tell my friends in the Congress that the Yatra went very well. But they must not stop at that."

The Bharat Jodo Yatra 

Bharat Jodo Yatra, led by Rahul Gandhi, reached 12 states and two Union territories in 145 days after kicking off on September 7, 2022, covering 4,080 kilometres. The yatra came to an end on January 30 with a ceremony and a huge rally at the Congress headquarters in Srinagar where Rahul Gandhi unfurled the national flag. The party said that it received support from many political parties and social organisations across India and further claimed that Bharat Jodo Yatra has been the longest march on foot by any political leader in the history of India.