Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra finally came to an end on a snowy day in Srinagar after 135 days and 4,084 km. It’s far too early to gauge whether it will remake Rahul’s political fortune—but it has most certainly transformed his public image. In this first instalment, we look at the yatra itself—and why Gandhi decided to take a very long walk.
Researched by: Sara Varghese & Nirmal Bhansali
Remind me about this yatra…
The Bharat Jodo Yatra kicked off in Kanyakumari on September 7 and ended on January 30 in Srinagar. The journey of 135 days covered 4,084 km—passing through 75 districts in 12 states and two union territories. Over the course of his walkabout, Gandhi addressed only 12 large public rallies. Most of his time was spent in more intimate interactions—in nukkad meetings and sit-downs—or walking with community members and leaders.
The key cameos: While the Bharat Jodo Yatra was announced at a key Congress meeting in May, 2022, Gandhi was careful to distance it from electoral politics. Instead, he framed it as a form of national bonding—claiming the yatris were “opening a shop of love in BJP’s market of hate.”
This made it easier for the yatra to attract a broad array of participants—who walked along his side for brief stretches. Examples include former Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan, former RAW secretary Amarjit Singh Dulat—plus celebs like Kamal Haasan, boxer Vijender Singh, and hip-hop artist Divine. Ofc, some of the photo-ops were unintentionally amusing—like this one with Rajan that ought to have been titled ‘Two Indian Uncles on Morning Walk’:)
Interestingly, Gandhi also drew the support of left-leaning activists such as Medha Patkar and Rohit Vemula’s mother, Radhika Vemula—who have very little reason to love the Congress party.
The most surprising endorsement: came from the chief of the Ayodhya Ram Mandir—who did not walk with Gandhi but apparently wrote him a very nice letter:
I wrote a letter to Rahul to send him my blessings for his mission of uniting all people in the country. The country’s prosperity is only possible if different castes and religions come together.
Key point to note: This wide-ranging popularity was made possible by Gandhi’s refusal to offer a real answer to the most politically difficult questions. For example, in Srinagar, he spent 30 minutes ducking questions about Article 370. When pressed on promises made by his grandfather—Jawaharlal Nehru—he offered this vague bit of filmi dialogue:
I am not happy with what I see in Jammu and Kashmir. I have realised in my life that love and affection and listening is a very powerful force and I intend to do that as much as I possibly can. I don’t want to comment on the historical aspect of it.
But why a yatra?
Because the padayatra has a hallowed tradition in Indian politics—especially as the political weapon of the underdog:
- Mahatma Gandhi’s Dandi March spanned 388 km—and struck a great blow against the empire.
- He set an example for his acolyte Vinobha Bhave who walked 80,000 km as part of the 14-year Bhoodan movement, which began in 1951.
- Or perhaps Gandhi Jr was inspired by Chandra Shekhar’s six-month-long padayatra in 1983 from Kanyakumari to Delhi to annoy Indira Gandhi.
- The late YSR Reddy did a three-month walk to oust Chandrababu Naidu—and earned the chief minister gaddi for the rest of his life.
- In 2013, Chandrababu Naidu trudged 1,700 km to win the same prize.
- And in 2019, YSR’s son Jagan Reddy—the current Telangana CM—undertook a 3,648 km walkathon over 341 days to catapult his down-and-out political career.
The austerity card: It is also the most effective counter to the BJP’s ‘spoilt rich boy’ narrative. After all, today, it is Narendra Modi and Amit Shah who chopper in and out of their political rallies in grand style. How better to show them up than to play the ‘tapasya’ card—turning the gruelling walkabout into a spectacular show of austerity.
The BJP in Gandhi’s narrative is the ‘sangthan of pooja’: “RSS wants they be forcibly worshipped. Modi ji wants this, that is why he does not meet you (the media), that he be worshipped forcibly and all people in the country should worship him.” The optics of walking on dusty roads amid crowds of ordinary Indians also offers a contrast to the glittering grandeur of the rath yatra—which is now irrevocably linked to the BJP and its Hindu nationalist ideology.
Point to note: To Gandhi’s credit, no national leader has undertaken a proper padayatra in recent years. As this Hindu Business Line column cheekily notes:
Today’s politicians, like Lalu Prasad’s son Tejashwi, or the late Madhavrao Scindia’s son Jyotiraditya, or Yashwant Sinha’s son Jayant (our current junior finance minister), may be fit but they are not so austere... Older netas like Sharad Pawar and J Jayalalithaa don’t look like they ever did a padayatra in their life, even before their current health woes. No wonder they’re called political heavyweights.Today’s democrats don’t even walk up-and-down the narrow lanes of a densely-populated urban constituency, lest voters interpret it as not having money for a flashy new SUV (and thus, no funds to win the poll).
A big PR plan: ‘Pappu’ begone!
The primary aim of the yatra was to remake Gandhi’s image. The BJP has been extremely successful in painting him as an entitled—and not-so-bright—bade baap ka beta. Gandhi’s disastrous media appearances offered plenty of evidence for the ‘Pappu’ claims. And once the BJP came into power, the bigger outlets quickly got the message that positive coverage of the Gandhis would be highly unwelcome. It’s why the Bharat Jodo Yatra got such little coverage in the mainstream media—especially on television.
Point to note: Over the course of the yatra, Gandhi and Congress leaders have repeatedly harped on the theme of a hostile media:
Thousands of crores have been spent to distort my image. This was done systematically by the BJP and its leaders. Thousands of crores can't hide the truth and you have witnessed it. The truth always comes out,
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge bluntly declared that the yatra was designed to do an end-run around the editorial gatekeepers—and go “directly” to the people. In fact, Gandhi has mostly spoken to local press over the course of the yatra—ignoring the national outlets.
A social media offensive: For years, the Congress has been mocked for losing the social media game to the BJP. But the Yatra showed that their PR flacks have finally caught up with their rivals. Each stage of the yatra produced a powerful image—which went instantly viral—and proved irresistible even to Gandhi critics.
It all started with this image of Gandhi speaking in the pouring rain in Mysore:
Then there was this touching maa-beta moment that drew sentimental appreciation from openly pro-BJP news anchors:
A perennial hit: kids. Whatever you may think of the Gandhi scion, there is no doubt that he shares his grandfather’s love for children:
Amusing point to note: His photos with children of all ages proved so successful that the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights asked the Election Commission to investigate his use of children as “political tools”:
Disturbing images and videos have been circulating on social media wherein it can be seen that children are being targeted and are made to participate in their campaign with a political agenda under the slogan ‘Bharat Jodo, Bacche Jodo’.
The bottomline: So did this 135-day tapasya work? Will it save Congress and Gandhi from political oblivion? We look at these pressing questions in part 2.
Reading list
Scroll had the best ground coverage of the yatra. Shoaib Daniyal explained 1) how the visuals worked to remake Gandhi—and 2) why the Congress is so angry with the media. The Indian Express compares the Bharat Jodo Yatra with padayatras of the past. Newslaundry has two good pieces: This one offers a front-seat view of Gandhi’s press conference in Srinagar—while the other looks at how the mainstream media blanked the yatra out. Hindu Businessline and Deccan Herald lay out how padayatras have shaped politics in the country.
