The Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra has taken a pre-planned break after 12 continuous days and will resume on January 28 with a padyatra in West Bengal’s Jalpaiguri, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said on January 26, 2024.
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Mr. Ramesh said, “After 12 continuous days in Manipur, Nagaland, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Cooch Behar in West Bengal, the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra has taken a pre-planned break from the afternoon of January 25th.” “The yatra will resume at 1400hrs on January 28th with a padyatra in Jalpaiguri, followed by a padyatra in Siliguri and a public address there. The night halt is at Sonapur in Uttar Dinajpur district,” he said.
Mr. Gandhi is undertaking the over 6,700-km Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra from Manipur to Mumbai. The Yatra is currently going through West Bengal. It entered Cooch Behar on Thursday morning where Mr. Gandhi was accorded a rousing welcome by party workers.
West Bengal Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said his party was facing problems in getting permission for organising some public meetings as part of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in the State.
Speaking to reporters in Siliguri, Mr. Chowdhury said, “In some places, we are facing roadblocks as we are not getting permission to organise public meetings, citing exams. The Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra has faced problems in the Northeast, including Assam, and now it is facing problems in TMC-ruled West Bengal as well.”
The ruling Trinamool Congress, however, claimed that the administration in West Bengal is free of political influences.
“Adhir Chowdhury is responsible for the INDIA alliance falling apart in West Bengal. Secondly, all opposition parties conduct programmes in the state, nobody faces any problems. The administration must have taken the decision as there are board examinations in schools,” TMC MP Santanu Sen said.