Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi’s ‘unity march’ enters national capital

March led by Gandhi joined by thousands of party workers, citizens, and senior leaders

India’s opposition leader Rahul Gandhi’s five-month-long cross-country march, aimed at uniting a fractious country, finally entered capital New Delhi on Saturday.

Mr Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra (march to unite India) was joined by thousands of party workers, common citizens, and senior leaders with the motive of reviving the once-mighty Congress party and showcasing a “real India” instead of the “hate-filled version” offered by prime minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), according to the leader of the political outfit undertaking the long march.

Mr Gandhi set off for Bharat Jodo Yatra in Kanyakumari, a coastal town that is the southernmost tip of India, on 7 September.

The march, which is broadcast live on a website, is expected to traverse 3,570km (2,218 miles) and cross 12 states before finishing in the federal territory of Kashmir by February 2023.

Passing through hundreds of villages and towns, the march has attracted farmers worried about rising debt, students complaining about increasing unemployment, civil society members and rights activists who say India’s democratic health is in decline.

In multiple impassioned speeches during the march, Mr Gandhi has often targeted Mr Modi and his government for doing very little to address the growing economic inequality in India, the rising religious polarisation, and the threat posed by China.

BJP on the other hand has dismissed Mr Gandhi’s march and speeches as a political gimmick to regain his “lost credibility”.

“The character of the Congress has been to break India,” BJP said in a tweet on Saturday.

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Rasheed Kidwai, a political analyst, said Mr Gandhi is “employing some politically correct methods during his long walk that has potential to do some image correction for him”. But he cautioned that only electoral victories will in the end define whether his march is successful.

“Modi’s BJP has a success rate of about 90 per cent in over 200 parliamentary seats where it’s in direct contest with the Congress. If this march reduces that rate, that would be quite a success. In a democracy, it is important to be relevant and win elections,” Mr Kidwai said.

Additional reporting by agencies