Samba/Jammu/Nagrota: Strolling proper behind Rahul Gandhi all through his Bharat Jodo Yatra, holding the Tricolour excessive, is a 28-year-old legislation graduate who’s been barefoot for a dozen years.
Clad in a saffron turban and garments the color of the nationwide flag — with photos of the Congress chief and slogans of the Bharat Jodo Yatra splashed on them — Dinesh Sharma stands out.
“Jab tak Rahulji Bharat ke pradhan mantri nahi ban jaate, major bina chappal ke sangharsh karta rahoonga (Till Rahul Gandhi turns into prime minister of India, I’ll stay barefoot),” an enthusiastic Sharma informed ThePrint. It’s a vow he’s stayed true to since 2011.
It’s simple to overlook Sharma when Gandhi is seen on tv, however no customer to the yatra — which is on its final leg this month — can miss him. He’s the lone flag-bearer who has entry inside the previous Congress president’s tight safety ring.
On one event in Samba, Jammu, a former MP was struggling to get by means of to Gandhi due to his safety — however Sharma had quick access.
Sharma is neither an MLA nor a corporator, and he holds no official place within the Congress. But, Gandhi and people round him know the person personally. Most get together staff know him as effectively. His garments are most likely the rationale most yatris consult with him as “Panditji”.
Talking about his journey, Sharma stated, “My 12-year-long yatra is continuous. On this yatra, one other yatra started, within the type of India’s greatest jan andolan, the Bharat Jodo Yatra. … I picked up India’s flag and underneath this Tricolour, my yatra continues. I’m grateful that I obtained an opportunity to carry the Tricolour… It feels superb.”
He added, “Wherever Rahulji goes, there I’ll journey and serve.”
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Why Rahul Gandhi?
The Bharat Jodo Yatra began from Kanyakumari on 7 September, 2022, and Sharma has been strolling alongside Gandhi since then. Born in Kakrod village in Jind, Haryana, Sharma comes from a well-off household. He has borne the bills of his journey himself, he stated.
In 2021, he even celebrated his birthday with Gandhi — which was tweeted out by the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee.
When requested what had pulled him to the Congress chief, Sharma stated he was drawn to the illustrious historical past of the Nehru-Gandhi household and Rahul Gandhi’s “josh, shakti, taakat (enthusiasm, energy and energy)”.
“When Pandit (Jawaharlal) Nehru turned the nation’s first prime minister, he took the nation to nice heights. Then, the late dadimaa (grandmother) Indiraji (Gandhi), who was Congress president, took India to even larger heights. She died for the nation. From the identical household, the identical get together, Rajivji (Gandhi) additionally died for the nation. And from the identical household, the identical get together, Rahul Gandhiji emerged as a frontrunner,” stated Sharma.
He believes that Gandhi “will do one thing” for India.
“Rahulji noticed ache at a younger age. He misplaced his grandmother (Indira Gandhi) and he misplaced his father (Rajiv Gandhi) at a younger age. That chief, Rahulji, will do one thing for this nation. And I’ve a dream to see India as primary on this planet. I felt that if somebody can fulfil my goals, it’s Rahulji. That day I took this vow (of strolling barefoot),” Sharma stated.
Maintaining with the Bharat Jodo Yatra, which goals to cowl a distance of three,500 km, isn’t simple. The tempo is quick, the climate is fickle and Sharma’s naked toes make the going even more durable for him.
However Sharma sees the yatra as a combat to “save the nation”, with a lot greater targets. Discussing the journey’s challenges, he stated, “Log behosh bhi hue, aur is andolan mein log shaheed bhi hue (Individuals have collapsed throughout this motion, and folks have additionally been martyred). Whoever has died right here,has died for the nation. They’ll at all times be remembered.”
He stated there may be an “ambiance of concern within the nation, inflation is touching the sky, and India has the very best unemployment on this planet”, including that “these are driving components within the Bharat Jodo Yatra”.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
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