THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra began at the Parasala border, with a rousing welcome in Kerala by state Congress leaders, including KPCC president K Sudhakaran and leader of opposition VD Satheesan.
Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the Congress, is currently on the "Bharat Jodo Yatra" from Kanniyakumari to Kashmir. On Sunday, he caused further uproar by skipping a ceremony to dedicate the memorials of two prominent Keralan Gandhians.
Gopinathan Nair and K.E. both identify as Gandhians. Maman are well-liked throughout the state.
Rahul Gandhi was going by the Noorul Islam Medical Sciences (NIMS) at Neyyatinkara while on his Yatra, and the Kerala leg of the journey's organisers had agreed that he would dedicate the two Gandhian memorials that had been built at the hospital structure. Both Gandhians were treated at the hospital for their medical emergency.
The 19-day tour of Kerala will visit 7 of the state's 14 districts. The two segments of the yatra are from 7 am to 10 am and from 4 pm to 7 pm. The yatra will traverse 25 kilometres per day, making it a total of around 450km. According to KPCC, the yatra will follow a schedule with less crowding in the mornings so as not to annoy the public, then a show of force. On the first day, Rahul Gandhi met with the anti-K Rail agitation's leaders, and he has another meeting with more leaders planned for Monday.
They include the individuals in charge of the Latin Catholic church-led Vizhinjam port agitation. He also engaged with the Balaramapuram-Neyyattinkara belt's handloom weavers. In response to the BJP's allegation that Rahul was wearing a foreign-brand t-shirt that cost more than Rs.41,000, spokesman Jairam Ramesh questioned whether the opposition party would now focus on his underwear. He claimed that the BJP was focusing on the Congress leader's shoes, socks, and hairdo in order to draw attention away from the yatra's success, which, in his opinion, has alarmed the saffron party.
Gandhi did not pause to officially open the memorials as he passed in front of the NIMS hospital.
As both Gandhians' family and friends including the late Gopinathan Nair's wife were waiting at the hospital grounds for the event, this caused controversy.
Later, President K. Sudhakaran of the Congress state unit apologised for the oversight and assured the NIMS Managing Director that a separate ceremony would be planned for the inauguration.
Gandhi's absence from the ceremony was criticised by MP Shashi Tharoor, who said: "Such things harm the credibility."
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