after 135 days on the roadled by Rahul Gandhi India Jodo Yatra Ended in Srinagar on the death anniversary of the Mahatma Many opposition leaders joined in hoisting the tricolor, The yatra, or at least the south-to-north version of it, thus ended, was a fitting end to the arduous journey undertaken by a leader to revive the fortunes of the beleaguered Congress. The purpose of the visit was to emphasize the difference between the party’s vision for India built on the slogan “unity in diversity” and the Hindutva ideology of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The party’s outreach may not have immediately revived its electoral fortunes – its influence has steadily declined and many of its leaders have defected to the BJP. But the imagination of the Congress heir interacting with civil society and citizens across the country and just organizing the yatra infused energy into the political machine of India’s oldest party. The Yatra’s message may have been rudimentary and a mixture of slogans, but it expressed quite clearly some of the party’s distinctive core values. It was even more evident in the optics in Srinagar.
Jammu and Kashmir has been India’s most conflict-ridden province and now remains a union territory after it was abruptly stripped of its special status in 2019 and bifurcated into two union territories. In the years that followed, violence in Kashmir escalated. Valley, the weakening of mainstream politics (which was briefly intertwined with the separatist current), and the imposition of communication lockdowns and measures to control freedom of the press. After months of turmoil, Kashmir is back in economic activity, with the tourism sector booming well, but a sense of unease over the sudden changes persists in the Valley and beyond. Repeated incidents of violence against Kashmiri Pandits have also been a sign of continued unrest. The presence of the Peoples Democratic Party and the National Conference at the flag-hoisting ceremony in Srinagar was a testimony to the extent of the yatra’s appeal to mainstream parties in the Valley, and in a way a genuine effort at solidarity among Kashmiris. Politics and the National Opposition. Yet, in terms of actual steps for the revival of the Congress, the party still needs to work hard at building organizational relevance in many parts of the country, especially in north India.