Tumkur, Karnataka: It has been a month since Rahul Gandhi and 150 ‘Bharat Yatris’ left on the 3,570 km India pair journey from Kanyakumari to Kashmir. By the time the yatra crossed the two states and reached Karnataka, many travelers were beginning to feel the heat.
As ThePrint spends time with travelers in Tumkur, many show war scars like blisters, while others talk of walking with a 102-degree fever. Some others speak of leaving home and family and children behind, which they describe as “the experience of a lifetime.”
Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh says that the process of selecting Bharat Yatris was about three weeks long. “There was a two-member committee consisting of Mukul Wasnik and Digvijay Singh. They scrutinized thousands of applications that came from the PCC (Pradesh Congress Committee),” says Ramesh.
They say age, fitness, length of service in Congress and the PCC’s recommendations were some of the factors that were taken into account when preparing the final list.
He said that about 30 per cent of the 150 passengers are women and the aim was to make the group as diverse as possible.
A typical day for travelers involves waking up at 4.30 a.m. and then getting ready at the camp site at 6 a.m. in time to hoist the flag and sing the national anthem. The starting point for the day is usually a few kilometers from the campsite. The journey starts daily between 6.30 am to 7 pm.
Passengers walk about 10-11 km till 11 am, when they reach the break point of the day. The journey once again starts at 4 pm and ends by 7 pm covering a distance of 10-11 km, after which the participants retire to the camp for the day.
ThePrint talks to some India travelers in their rest tents in Tumkur, Karnataka during the trip.
young and old’
Anulekha Busa, 27, from Telangana is the youngest India traveler and the national secretary of the National Students’ Union of India, the student wing of the Congress.
“I was also the youngest representative at Nav Sankalp Shivir (in Udaipur),” she quips.
However this journey has not been easy. “In Kerala, due to humidity and other things, I was ill for four days. Out of that, I couldn’t even get up for two days,” she says, showing blisters on her leg. “Even then, I was in the ambulance for half the day and walking for the other half. Many old people are also walking in this journey. I thought, ‘If they can walk why can’t I?’
She is probably referring to 58-year-old Vijender Singh Mehlawat of Alwar, perhaps the oldest traveller. When asked if he too was facing health issues, Mahlawat replied in the negative.
“In the first few days, I had some pain in my knees. But that’s gone too soon,” he says.
Giving details of his selection for the yatra, Mehlawat said that both the party and his family were very apprehensive. “When I told my leaders, they said I was 58 and impressed me that it would be difficult to walk at such an age. They also said that younger boys who applied would be more likely to be selected. I asked them Said that even if I was 98 years old, I would have applied.
He says, ‘When Rajiv Gandhi’s sons are walking, why not me.’
When asked what has been his most memorable moment in the last 30 days, the Rajasthan native broke down.
“We have been instructed not to eat too much outside food. Even if we do, we are asked to eat packed food. But in Kerala, a woman, who said she was a teacher, brought biscuits that she would cook herself. He asked us to eat. I can never forget it. The kind of love showered on us.”
‘politician’
The yatra includes people like Anulekha and Vijendra, who are at the very bottom of the party hierarchy, also include veteran politicians who live in the same camp.
One of them is Congress’ training in-charge Sachin Rao and Congress messages informing the party’s official announcements.
When asked about any discomfort or fever, Rao says that for him the journey is now beyond such things. “Mentally, I am at a place where I bow my head everyday, that is home. This is not normal. This is not everyday life. It is a different dimension spiritually, mentally and emotionally. Routine, Words like home, niggles don’t really matter. This universe is different.”
He also says that the yatra has given him something he has never had in his entire political career – common people thank him for doing his job.
“It’s something like this: They will stop you and ask you ‘Where are you from’. Then I say, ‘Delhi’. Then they ask ‘Where are you from?’ So, I say ‘Kanyakumari’. Then they ask, ‘Hey! You are going all over Kashmir?’ Then when I say ‘yes’, they want to make sure they’ve heard right. Then they give you two thumbs up and say ‘thank you’. How many times do you get thanked in politics for what you’re doing? It’s not even a place where you get respect for what you’re doing. So, it’s an incredible place to say thank you so often.”
Rao also inspired fellow traveler Chandy Oommen, son of former Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, to walk barefoot.
When Chandy was asked about his usual routine, he said that he is usually “a little late” when he wakes up in the morning. But it has changed since the yatra started on 7th September.
“It’s so different from my routine at St. Stephen’s College, I can tell you that!” He says, remembering his college days in Delhi.
Then he explains the reason behind walking barefoot. “When I started I was not barefoot. Then Sachin Rao gave me advice and when I was in Kollam (Kerala) I let it go. I walked 17 km barefoot and I found it gives me energy. My feet were freed. If the road is good, it is the best means.”
Chandy further says that the highlight of the trip for him was when his father accompanied Rahul Gandhi.
“Three times that” [Rahul] Insisted that my father go back, like he did with Sonia Gandhi. Actually, once he made my father sit in the car and even held his feet and put him inside the car because my father has some problem with his feet. It really touched me, especially when I saw him dealing with Sonia Yes like that.”
Women
47-year-old Sheeba Ramachandran left a daughter in class 9 with her husband to join the journey to Kerala.
“Ever since I got married, I have never asked my husband for permission to go anywhere. Be it Taj Mahal, Darjeeling or Paris. So this time too, I didn’t need his permission. He said I can go without any headache and he will take care of the house. ,
She says her motivation to walk is unemployment in the country and how educated youth go abroad in search of jobs. Sheeba herself was working as a teacher in Saudi Arabia for 15 years, during which she was associated with the Overseas Indian Cultural Congress (OICC).
His biggest cheerleader is his daughter.
“She told me, ‘Amma’ [mother], be bold!’. She could read me very well. I have always given importance to both my family and the party. This time is no different. Revival of the party is the need of the hour.
Next to Sheeba in the resting tent sits 46-year-old Fatima Ibrahim, who she says has been an active member of the Congress party for 23 years.
In fact, she says proudly, two of her three children are also working with the party.
“My 26-year-old son is the college election president, while my 21-year-old daughter is the state general secretary of Jawahar Bal Manch. My third child is my 18-year-old daughter and she has yet to join the madness,” she laughs.
Fatima says that the response received from the common people for the yatra has impressed her the most. “While we are walking, a lot of disabled people wait on the road to catch a glimpse of Rahul Yes, Women bring their children. It’s really touching.”
popular neurologist
Shushrut Haden, 48, appears to be one of the most popular travelers to the camp.
The team at ThePrint was led by fellow travellers who insisted that we speak to them.
Haden, a neurologist by profession, trained in the US and lived there for 15 years. He returned to India in 2019. He says that he is not affiliated with Congress or any other political party.
“When I came back in 2019, I decided to do some social work for the people of Mysore and its surroundings. We have treated around 3,500 people free of cost and have delivered health care to their homes. We set up health camps and then came back with telemedicine. This was noticed by some Congress people and they asked me if I wanted to join the Bharat Jodi Yatra,” he says.
“I have a selfish reason to participate in this journey. I wanted to take a look at rural areas and make a plan to help rural people. If another pandemic strikes, telemedicine would be a good idea.”
Hayden says he discussed his telemedicine plans with Rahul when he got a chance to walk with him during the walkathon.
“I was surprised how knowledgeable he is. He explained the telemedicine technology why it cannot be adopted in India now and how it can be adopted later. He asked me about the difference between rural and urban healthcare system. I also talked about how many problems in this area can be solved through integrated insurance schemes. I was pleasantly surprised that in today’s time even politicians think about such things,” says the neurologist.
(Edited by Tony Rae)
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