New Delhi: The INDIA "janbandhan" is locked and loaded, ready to dispel the "darkness of the anyay kaal", the Congress said on Sunday after Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav joined Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Agra.
The coming together of Gandhi and Yadav put days of uncertainty on the latter's participation in the yatra to an end and came as a boost to the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), which has sealed key seat-sharing deals of late.
The AAP and the Congress on Saturday sealed a seat-sharing deal for Lok Sabha seats in Delhi, Gujarat, Goa and Haryana but decided to contest separately in Punjab, considering the "special circumstances" in the state.
With this, the Congress finalised its seat adjustments for 125 constituencies with INDIA bloc constituents, after recently striking an arrangement with the Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh.
However, challenges still remain as the INDIA bloc has to work out seat-sharing deals in the key states of West Bengal and Maharashtra.
In a post on X, Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said, "Massive, enthusiastic, and energised crowds gathered in Agra to welcome Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, and Akhileh Yadav. The leaders garlanded the statue of Babasaheb Ambedkar before taking out a historic roadshow through the heart of Agra."
"The INDIA janbandhan is locked and loaded, ready to dispel the darkness of the anyay kaal," Mr Ramesh said.
In another post, the Congress leader said the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra has completed its journey through Uttar Pradesh (UP), that lasted eight days.
The journey started in Chandauli and passed through the Varanasi, Bhadohi, Prayagraj, Pratapgarh, Amethi, Raebareli, Lucknow, Unnao, Kanpur, Moradabad, Amroha, Sambhal, Bulandshahr, Aligarh, Hathras and the Agra districts, he said.
"Undoubtedly, the high point was Akhikesh Yadav's participation in Agra this afternoon," Mr Ramesh said.
"The Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra has not only galvanised the party organisation in UP but also given new hope to all sections of UP society, especially the youth. Rahul Gandhi raised the issue of paper leaks for four consecutive days and the impact of his speeches was felt on the morning of February 24 when the Yogi (Adityanath) government announced the cancellation of the examination held earlier this month for the recruitment to the post of police constable, the paper for which had been leaked," he said.
Gandhi had made this a telling example of the injustice being inflicted on the youngsters of Uttar Pradesh, who are already facing the highest unemployment in the last 45 years, he said.
"Rahul Gandhi's repeated emphasis on the farmers' issues also resonated loudly. He highlighted the Congress' guarantee to give legal status to MSP (Minimum Support Price) and to fix MSP based on the formula suggested by Bharat Ratna Dr MS Swaminathan. Both these demands have been consistently ignored by the prime minister," Ramesh said.
He said Gandhi also spoke forcefully on the need to carry out a socioeconomic caste census to ensure deeper and more meaningful social justice.
"The UP leg of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra has given a thumbs-UP both to the Congress and to the INDIA janbandhan!" Ramesh added.
Congress and Samajwadi Party workers raised slogans in support of Yadav and Gandhi as the two leaders, accompanied by Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, waved at the crowd gathered for the yatra.
Attacking the government in his address on the occasion, Yadav said, "Today, farmers are standing against the government. The government is scared of the power of farmers. In the coming time, the BJP will be removed and the INDIA coalition government will give respect to farmers."
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)