Congress scion Rahul Gandhi is currently in Jammu & Kashmir for the final leg of his ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’. Ironically, this yatra, allegedly to promote unity in India, has consistently used divisive rhetoric, to pitch state vs state, locals vs outsiders, and gave platform to people who promote hate, and the last leg of this journey was no different.
Whipping up emotions against “outsiders” in Jammu & Kashmir, Rahul Gandhi said, “Earlier, locals of Jammu used to do business here. Locals of Jammu & Kashmir used to run Jammu & Kashmir. Today ‘outsiders’ are running it. Our rights, and our voice, are not heard by the administration.”
In TN he spoke about Dravidian identity, in J an K he is batting against migrant labourers and admin
— The Brain Doctor. (@DNeurosx) January 28, 2023
RaGa entire BJY is divisive.pic.twitter.com/R5gnuAfkK4
The Congress leader further said, “Entire trade in Jammu & Kashmir is being done by outsiders. The people of Jammu & Kashmir are just watching them. Secondly, unemployment is highest in Jammu & Kashmir in entire India.” Thereby implying that locals are losing out to outsiders when it comes to jobs and trade.
This rhetoric against ‘outsiders’ in the Union Territory from Rahul Gandhi has come at a time when non-locals have been facing an increasing number of targeted attacks in recent times. Incidents of targeted killings of ‘non-locals’ have become commonplace in the UT during the past few years.
In June last year, two non-local workers were shot at by Islamic terrorists in central Kashmir. In October last year, terrorists killed two labourers from Uttar Pradesh in Jammu and Kashmir’s Shopian district. A month later, two migrant labourers from Uttar Pradesh were left injured after being shot by terrorists in south Kashmir’s Anantnag area.
With non-locals already under threat, the rhetoric used by Rahul Gandhi further puts them in the crosshair of terrorists as they get blamed for unemployment in the state.
The divisive nature of Bharat Jodo Yatra by Rahul Gandhi
Even though Rahul Gandhi and his Congress party have repeatedly said that they are spreading “love” against hatred and this Bharat Jodo Yatra is an attempt to unite Indians, this political stunt has been full of divisive agenda, and joined by people with hateful ideologies right throughout this ‘political pilgrimage’ of Gandhi.
From Father George Ponnaiah who has employed hateful rhetoric against Hindus, to Rijil Chandran Makkutty who slaughtered a calf in public, this yatra has given a platform to all sorts of figures who promote hate.
The Congress scion himself attempted to create animosity between the States of Gujarat and Maharashtra by falsely claiming that projects meant for the latter were being moved to favour the former. He even went on a vitriolic tirade against freedom fighter Veer Savarkar during the Maharashtra leg of his ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra.’ On November 15, Rahul Gandhi claimed that the freedom fighter took a pension from the British government to work against the Indian National Congress (INC).
With its divisive theme throughout, it is hardly surprising that Rahul Gandhi wants to end his yatra on a similar note by pitting Indians against fellow Indians even at the last stage
