Mallikarjun Kharge invites parties to yatra’s concluding event

New Delhi, January 11

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has invited leaders of 21 “like-minded” parties to join the concluding function of the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Srinagar on January 30, saying their presence would strengthen the yatra’s message of “truth, compassion and non-violence”.

The invitation has not been extended to at least five non-BJP parties — the BJD, YSRCP, AIADMK, AIDUF and the AIMIM. It is also not clear whether AAP has been invited.

The NCP, DMK, CPI(M), CPI and the TMC are among the parties approached by Kharge. The Congress chief wrote that on the invitation of Rahul Gandhi, MPs of several parties had joined the yatra at different stages. “I now invite you to personally join the concluding function of the yatra in Srinagar on January 30. The event will be dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi. We will commit ourselves to fighting hatred and violence, to spread the message of truth, compassion and non-violence, and to defend the constitutional values of liberty, equality, fraternity and justice for all,” Kharge wrote.

The yatra, which started from Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu on September 7 last year, will conclude in Srinagar on January 30, with Rahul Gandhi hoisting the Tricolour there. The march has so far covered more than 3,300 km passing through Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.