"Direct Impact": Congress Shares Bharat Jodo Yatra's Karnataka Scorecard

Upbeat after its thumping victory in Karnataka, the Congress has put out a report card showing how the party benefited from the Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra.

Jairam Ramesh, Congress's communication chief and Rajya Sabha MP, put out a table comparing the party's performance in 20 assembly seats through which the Yatra passed.

The list showed that the Congress, which won 5 out of these 20 seats in the 2018 assembly elections, made huge gains and was leading in 15 at 4 pm. The BJP, which won nine of the 20 seats last time, was ahead in two. The JDS, a winner on six seats, was leading on three.

"While this is the direct impact of the #BharatJodoYatra in Karnataka, the intangible impact was uniting the party, reviving the cadre and shaping the narrative for the Karnataka elections. It was during the Bharat Jodo Yatra, from the many conversations @RahulGandhi had with the people of Karnataka, that the Guarantees and the promises in our manifesto were discussed and finalised," Mr Ramesh said in an accompanying tweet.

According to the latest data on the Election Commission website, the Congress has won 101 seats and is leading in 35. The BJP, a distant second, has won 48 and is leading in 64.

This is a huge shot in the arm for the Opposition party ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha election.

The Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra from Kanyakumari to Kashmir went through 12 states and took 146 days. The 3,500-km march, a desperate attempt by the party to rally support ahead of the general election, saw Rahul Gandhi address multiple public meetings during which he targeted the ruling BJP.