Congress yatra in Bihar today after Nitish Kumar’s U-turn, calls out ‘betrayal’

A day after Nitish Kumar’s return to the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), Congress’s ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’ led by Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to enter Bihar on Monday.

This will be Rahul Gandhi’s first visit to the state since the assembly poll campaign in 2020. The Bihar leg of the yatra will start from Kishanganj, which is a Congress stronghold with a heavy Muslim population.

In Kishanganj, Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to address a public meeting followed by a big rally in the adjoining district of Purnea on Tuesday. A day later, another rally is planned in Katihar.

Nitish Kumar, who played an instrumental role in bringing together various Opposition parties that resulted in the formation of the INDIA bloc, was expected to share the stage with Rahul Gandhi during the yatra in the state.

RJD supremo Lalu Yadav is likely to take part in the rally either in Purnea or in Katihar on January 31, subject to his availability in view of the Enforcement Directorate summons. CPI(ML)-L general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya has also been invited to the rally in Purnea.

The yatra will cover four districts in three days in Bihar, and Rahul Gandhi will leave for West Bengal again on Thursday via Araria district. He will return to Bihar a few days later via Jharkhand.

Ending the days-long uncertainty in Bihar, Nitish Kumar on Sunday severed ties with the Mahagadbandhan comprising the RJD and Congress on Saturday as he resigned as the Chief Minister. Hours after the resignation, he was sworn in as the Chief Minister for a record ninth time with the support of the BJP and other NDA constituent parties.

Targeting Nitish Kumar, Congress leaders condemned his decision to join the NDA and accused him of “betrayal” while maintaining that it would not affect the INDIA bloc. In his latest response, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said it was a “complete betrayal”.

“Nitish Kumar called a meeting. Eighteen parties were present in Patna. The meeting was held in Bengaluru and Mumbai. Nitish Kumar was present at all the meetings. He didn’t give any hint (that he would break ties with the INDIA bloc). It is a matter of regret that he left our hands at the last moment. This is a complete betrayal of trust and the people of Bihar will answer him soon for this (betrayal),” he said.

The INDIA bloc was formed by several Opposition parties to take on the BJP in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.