Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said he had to cancel Bharat Jodo Yatra for the day in Jammu and Kashmir because police arrangements unfortunately “completely collapsed”.
“It’s the Jammu and Kashmir administration’s responsibility to provide security…” he told reporters in Khanbal. “I think it’s important that the police manage the crowd so that we can do the yatra. It’s very difficult for me to go against what my security people are recommending,” he said. “I hope security will now be ensured for remaining days of the yatra.”
The party’s ambitious Bharat Jodo Yatra resumed from Jammu and Kashmir’s Banihal early on Friday but soon after, got disrupted due to an alleged security lapse, party sources said. J&K’s Congress incharge Rajani Patil took to Twitter and blamed the UT administration for failing to provide proper security during the yatra.
Government sources, however, denied the allegations of a security lapse and told CNN-News18 that it is all a “ploy to gain sympathy”. Sources said the Congress was not keen on taking the yatra to Srinagar and wanted to a abandon it midway.
Rahul Gandhi was joined by former J&K chief minister and National Conference vice-president Omar Abdullah in Banihal. Gandhi said both could only walk 4 km, when they were slated to walk 16 km.
Donning a white T-shirt like Gandhi, Abdullah started walking with the Congress leader, along with hundreds of Congress supporters. “The Bharat Jodo Yatra is not aimed at improving the image of Rahul Gandhi but for improving the situation in the country,” the NC leader said on his arrival in the highway town of Banihal, 120 km from Srinagar.
He also said the outer ring of the cordon, which was to be maintained by the Jammu and Kashmir police, “simply vanished within minutes of Rahul Gandhi starting to walk”. “We had just crossed into Kashmir from Jammu and were looking forward to the 11-km walk but unfortunately it had to be cancelled,” he said.
Gandhi, after reaching Qazigund, started to walk towards Vessu in South Kashmir as per the plan but the Congress workers suddenly found that the outer cordon, which was to be managed by Jammu and Kashmir police, had disappeared, alleged Congress leaders. Gandhi had to call off the walk after he barely walked 500 m, they said.
“The authorities responsible must answer for this lapse and take appropriate steps to prevent such incidents in future,” tweeted AICC general secretary KC Venugopal.
Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said a similar situation happened when Rahul Gandhi was walking in Delhi and alleged that the police there had “pre-planned a stampede”. In J&K’s case, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha should be answerable, he said.
“When Rahul Gandhi was walking in Delhi, I was with him. It happened here too. Delhi Police pre-planned a stampede. We urged them again and again for enhanced security for Rahul Gandhi,” Chowdhury said.
He added: “In Delhi, security is provided by Delhi L-G and, in J&K, its J&K L-G. You can understand whose words both L-Gs follow. Manoj Sinha is in Srinagar, he will have to answer.”
Government sources also said the J&K administration was providing full security to the Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra. The administration was ready to increase the number of police personnel if the Congress wanted, they added.
“Jammu and Kashmir government from Day 1 has been providing foolproof security arrangements to the yatra and any allegation suggesting otherwise, is totally baseless and far from reality,” official sources said.
The Kashmir Zone Police responded to the allegations, claiming that the organisers and managers of the yatra did not inform them about a large gathering joining from Banihal. They said full security arrangements were in place but the J&K Police was not consulted about the yatra being discontinued after walking only for 1 km.
Only authorised persons as identified by organisers & frisked crowd was allowed inside towards the route of Yatra. Organisers & managers of BJY did not intimate about large gathering from Banihal joining the Yatra, which thronged near the starting point. (1/3)— Kashmir Zone Police (@KashmirPolice) January 27, 2023
Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said Gandhi’s security team was holding discussions with the J&K administration to ensure that everything went off smoothly for the next few days.
On January 25, the yatra had to be stopped at Ramban and its second leg was cancelled due to landslides along the Jammu-Srinagar national highway. From Banihal, the yatra was slated to enter the Kashmir Valley through Qazigund and reach Anantnag district’s Khanabal area.
The yatra started from Kanyakumari on September 7 and entered Jammu and Kashmir via Punjab.
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