Bharat Jodo Yatra Experience Archives - Lokmarg

I Am Constantly Experiencing A Bharat Jodo Yatra Inside Me

By LokMarg 18th December 2022

Sanjay Verma, an Indore-based businessman, says participating in Bharat Jodo Yatra gave him fresh insights to understand the country and its plurality better

I saw the mass frenzy that Bharat Jodo Yatra public meetings are generating from my own eyes in Bellary, Karnataka. Almost one lakh people were present at that meeting. The ground was muddy due to the rain some hours back, but the crowd stood undeterred.

I am from the Hindi Belt and could not understand what the people around me were talking in Kannada but I was reading their facial expressions. Those faces had a rush of adrenaline, dopamine, serotonin, and all sorts of hormones that produce joy. This was a wonderful sight after a long time.

Initially, I thought that the crowd was there due to a charismatic effect of Rahul Gandhi but no! The people had come to see and hear Siddaramaiah, their leader. When his name was announced, the crowd suddenly came to life. People started whistling, shouting slogans and stood up on their chairs to catch a glimpse of the stage. Siddharamaiya had to request for silence but no one seemed ready to hold their excitement. Once he had delivered his speech, people left the site. Thus I see the contribution of regional leaders in making Bharat Jodo Yatra a memorable connect.

***Verma (inset) joined the yatra during its Karnataka leg***

I was compelled to think why this sort of mass hysteria is not found in the Hindi belt. Is this a sign that we are more of a mature constituency or it shows a lack of collective empathy on our part? Is it also a sign of intense love in the South Indian people as compared to ours? It has always been a mystery for psychologists why people behave in a specific manner in person and mobs. Why do they make a leader out of someone and a villain out of others?

ALSO READ: ‘Rahul Said This Yatra Is His Tapasya’

People’s sentiments have no mathematical explanation as such. It is a question of internal realization that I felt after attending the Bharat Jodo Yatra event. Like any other travel experience this Yatra gave me fresh insights which helped me understand myself and the world better.

Was that hysterical mass behavior genetic? Or something that has to do with the collective memory that may be different from ours? Can this be regarded as a failure of the leaders from North India?

My identity is a maze. By birth, I am a Sindhi but my Hindi is like a resident of Uttar Pradesh. My surname speaks of coming from a lower caste. My friends tell me I can pass off as a South Indian in looks. My hobbies and companionship are literary but by profession, I am an industrialist. My wife is a Punjabi Sardar and my daughter-in-law is a Marwadi. I am an atheist though I participate in all religious festivals with my family.

Bharat Jodo Yatra Is India’s Battle Against Hate Politics

By LokMarg 13th December 2022

Bharat Soni, a retired banker and social worker from Mumbai who travelled 300 miles to join Maharashtra leg of the march, says he felt positivity all along

The Bharat Jodo Yatra is reaching the unreachable; it is trying to remove fear and hate. That was the real motivation which compelled me to join it. I had earlier walked with Rajiv Gandhi in a padyatra on March 27, 1983 from Dharavi to Sakinaka in Mumbai. This time, I wanted to walk the entire yatra, but I was restricted due to the upper-age limit.

It was an amazing experience. When I got the chance to walk with Rahul Gandhi, holding his hand, all of a sudden, there was a sense of ‘recharge’ within me. I started walking fast to match his steps. When he remarked that I look fit at 63, I said I draw a lot of inspiration from him on fitness. He smiled, looking straight into my eyes, pressed my hand, and said, “Good.” I am unable to express in words about this intense and beautiful feeling.

The USP of the yatra is its tight schedule. Rahul is punctual. He starts sharp at 6 am in the morning. Thousands of people, who are coming to see him, hear him and walk with him, are not a ‘paid’ crowd. Although a certain section of the Indian media is not reporting this incredible long march, the huge turnout, day after day, across so many states, certifies its impact. There is no doubt that the yatra will achieve its purpose of uniting the people of India and fight the politics of hate.

Since the yatra was not passing through Mumbai in its Maharashtra leg, we travelled 300 miles to reach Akola. My younger brother and I went to Patur, 15 miles from Akola. We couldn’t cross the security and reach the inside ring — the ‘D’. We, thereby, travelled another 25 miles to another town, Shegaon, and got our passes.

There are thousands of ordinary people walking in the yatra. I met a lady with an infant in her arms standing in humid climate just to have a glimpse of Rahul Gandhi. She had walked three miles to reach the spot. I asked her, what made her walk such a long distance with a child in her arms? She said, “If Rahul Gandhi can walk thousand-plus kilometers to my village, should I not come and show my love and respect for him as a sister?” She wanted her child also to see Rahul Gandhi — the “Gandhi of present times”.

At one place I saw a farmer carrying his son on his shoulder at the yatra. I asked his son, what made him come along with his father? The small child said that he has come to see Rahul Gandhi because he supports the farmers.

ALSO READ: ‘Rahul Told Me The Yatra Is His Tapasya’

When a group of employees of some cooperative banks came to know that I have been a banker, they said that they want to meet Rahul Gandhi and seek his help in restoring the old pension scheme. They were so confident even when I poked them saying that he is not in power, so how can he help them? They were unanimous that Rahul Gandhi has to raise the issue and our problem will be solved by the present government. Such was their confidence!

I felt huge positive vibrations among the people who walked along, and among those, who, untiringly, waited on the road to cheer the yatris. Youngsters would simply shout at the top of their voice, “Rahulji”, and, when he would look at them, they would say, “We love you.” I cherished their friendly gestures.

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Truly, one thing common among the people who joined and supported the Bharat Jodo Yatra was that there were no divisions based on caste, community or religion. The entire crowd was united as ‘Indian’ and with only one slogan: Nafrat Chhodo Bharat Jodo.

As told to Amit Sengupta

Rahul Gandhi Told Me Bharat Jodo Yatra Is His Tapasya

By LokMarg 24th November 2022

Darshan Mondkar, a Pune-based entrepreneur and story-teller, recreates his conversation with Rahul Gandhi during Bharat Jodo Yatra’s Maharashtra leg

I joined the (Bharat Jodo) yatra at Degloor when Rahul Gandhi entered into Maharashtra with the ‘Mashaal Walk’. I then walked as a ‘yatri’ from Degloor onwards for the entire day. I spent some time walking with him in the area of Biloli.

My conversation with him went on for about 20 minutes. He took the first couple of minutes to understand me — what I do, what sort of a thought process do I have. He pointed to a policeman in his security who was pushing the crowd behind and asked me, “Do you think this policeman has the right to beat that boy?”

I said, “No.”

He asked, “Why?”

I said, “His job is to protect you and not harm the rights of people.”

“So we have similar thoughts,” he said, and smiled.

“Why are you walking?” I asked.

He asked back: “Do you know the difference between puja and tapasya?”

“Yes, puja is worship and tapasya is penance,” I said.

He replied: “Tapasya comes from the word tup. When you do tapasya you generate heat; the energy which consumes you. It hurts you, it pains you. And, then, you achieve.”

I asked: “But what do you hope to achieve?”

“Your love, your blessings, our unity,” he is steadfast in his thoughts.

“There could have been other ways,” I said.

He explained: “Yes. Sure. I do not want to achieve anything without putting in an effort, without doing tup. Unless it hurts me, it pains me, any achievement is not worth it. This Bharat Jodo Yatra is my tapasya.”

“I am sure you will achieve your mission,” I replied.

He said, “One has to do tapasya without expectations and only then will it be successful. I don’t know whether I will achieve what I have set out to do. But, I will keep burning myself till I do that.”

I tell you. This man is a gem.

ALSO READ: ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra Is A Healing Touch For Nation’

The rest of the conversation revolved around the deep fears that we have in our society in India in contemporary times. He spoke about how we need to overcome the fear within us so that we can become strong voices against the fascism of BJP/RSS.

I was quickly able to understand that he is one of the easiest guy to talk to. He does not try to dominate the conversation and simply goes with the flow. Any apprehensions that I might have had about him totally evaporated.

I am not sure how much of this will translate into votes for the Congress, but, undoubtedly, Rahul Gandhi is being established as a ‘Man of the Moment’ and there is a huge image-revival happening for him which is an added bonus.