Shiv Sena’s Sanjay Raut join’s Bharat Jodo Yatra in Jammu and Kashmir amidst criticism from rival faction

Pic/Bharat Jodo Yatra twitter handle

Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Sanjay Raut Friday joined the Bharat Jodo Yatra led by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi as it entered the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

The Yatra resumed from Hatli Morh in Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir on Friday with several prominent leaders, including Sanjay Raut joining the foot march.

Although the yatra was scheduled to start at 7 am but was delayed by an hour and fifteen minutes due to heavy rains. Several Congress leaders, including the party's Jammu and Kashmir unit president Vikar Rasool Wani and his predecessor G A Mir, accompanied Gandhi during the final leg of the Bharat Jodo Yatra.

Also read: Jammu and Kashmir-leg of Bharat Jodo Yatra begins

Speaking to reporters, Raut said he sees Rahul Gandhi as a leader who raises his voice. He said the atmosphere of the country is changing. People are joining the Yatra.

On Thursday, Raut who is on a three-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir, met government employees from the Kashmiri Pandit community, who have been protesting for over 11 months demanding their relocation. The Shiv Sena leader expressed his solidarity with them.

Raut's move comes amidst heavy criticism by the rival faction of the Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde.

Bharat Jodo Yatra's official twitter handle tweeted the picture of Raut wlaking alongside Rahil Gandhi in J&K's Kathu. "What's gonna stop us, We are determined to unite India," read the caption of the pictures in Hindi.

Saamana, a mouth piece of Shiv Sena, of which raut is the executive editor, also tweeted a video of the yatra. "Shiv Sena leader and MP Sanjay Raut has participated in Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra in Jammu today. It is raining in Jammu today. But even in the rain, Rahul Gandhi and Sanjay Raut are walking. (SIC)," read the description of the tweet.

On Thursday, former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister and National Conference Member of Parliament from Srinagar-Budgam constituency, Dr Farooq Abdullah travelled from the erstwhile state's summer capital, Srinagar to Lakhanpur and the nearby Madhavpur bridge, which connects Jammu and Kashmir with the rest of the country, to embrace Rahul Gandhi.

Farooq, who heads the alliance fighting for the restoration of Article 370, shook hands with Rahul as thousands of supporters cheered to the tunes of Dogri, Punjabi and Kashmiri songs and chanted slogans in favour of a united and inclusive India.

Rahul tried to strike a chord with the people, recalling how his ancestors had travelled to Uttar Pradesh from Jammu and Kashmir.

"I am returning to my roots, starting on foot from Kanyakumari to Kashmir. I am here to learn from you. Each one of you has suffered a lot and I want to humbly say that I am here to share your grief," he said, without directly referring to the changes brought about in Kashmir in the past few years.

Farooq compared Rahul's Kanyakumari-to-Kashmir walkathon to one undertaken by Vedic scholar Shankaracharya in the eighth century.

"You are the second person to undertake such travel from Kanyakumari to Kashmir, the reason being that this country is being divided on religious lines and hate reigns supreme," he said, perhaps careful not to create any awkwardness by mentioning the restoration of Article 370.

On Thursday, Gandhi attacked the BJP and the RSS accusing them of spreading hatred and implementing policies that "have led to widespread unemployment."

"I am going back to my roots, I know the suffering of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and come to you with a bowed head. My ancestors belonged to this land, I feel I am returning home," he said. (With inputs from agencies.)