Bharat Jodo Yatra

The BRS is set to hold its first public meeting on January 18 in Khammam in which Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao is likely to unveil the party's national agenda. Rao has extended invitations to regional parties and those who skipped the Congress' BJY for the Khammam meet.

The programme will be for two months which will reach 2.5 lakh Gram Panchayats, six lakh villages and 10 lakh booths. This is a massive outreach programme of the Congress to take its political message to the people. Jairam Ramesh said, "This programme 'hath se hath jodo'

Addressing a gathering in Punjab's Ludhiana during his ongoing 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' on Thursday, Rahul Gandhi said, "The Prime Minister's 'billionaire friend' cannot compete with China, India's small industries can do it by providing employment to crores of youth in the country."

"A former RBI Gov walks in #BharatJodoYatra, BJP attacks him. A retired Army Gen does - he's maligned. Now a former Finance Secy who joined is booked by the CBI. Modi's FDI policy - Fear, Defamation & Intimidation - is at work here. This is the mindset of a coward. But BJY will roll on," Ramesh tweeted.

Addressing a public meeting before beginning the Punjab leg of the march, Rahul Gandhi said he felt humbled to have visited the site of the martyrdom of the two young sons of Guru Gobind Singh, who chose to lay down their lives in the fight against injustice and intolerance.

Almost all the G-23 leaders have joined the Yatra and the party is very enthusiastic in Punjab, said a Congress leader. Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra (BJY) entered Punjab on Wednesday morning with a visit to Gurudwara Fatehgarh Sahib and Dargah at Sirhind. He said that this Yatra was to fight the "biggest issues of the country -- hatred, unemployment and inflation".

While addressing the flag handover ceremony, he said that the Yatra was not about speaking but listening. "Listen to everyone who comes... only put views on the raised issue briefly". "We wake up early in the morning and start walking and till evening we meet people and listen to their issues

The yatra travelled 255 km, covering seven districts in eight days in Haryana. Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday offered prayers at the Golden Temple in Amritsar, a day ahead of the start of the Punjab leg of the Bharat Jodo Yatra. He landed at the Amritsar airport after concluding the Haryana leg of the march in Ambala district.

Gandhi's yatra was warmly welcomed by 50 women on reaching Tyoda village in Shahabad. He also met families of farmers and women farmers who were martyred in the farmer's movement. Farmer leaders of Haryana told Gandhi that Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda had given financial assistance of Rs 2 lakh

He said that the Jan Aakrosh Yatra reached all panchayats and villages of Rajasthan and more than 62,000 Nukkad Sabhas and Choupals were held. Contact has been made with more than 1.20 crore people of Rajasthan, and the message has reached 8 crore people of the state, he said. Singh also mocked the Ashok Gehlot government, saying that "Rahul gone, power gone", in Rajasthan on the present power crisis in the state.