Senior Congress leader and former chief minister Ajit Jogi’s son Amit on Saturday launched a week-long padyatra (foot-march) at Dantewada in Chhattisgarh’s restive Bastar division, coinciding with AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi’s birthday.
Around 40 youths, mostly Congress activists, led by the junior Jogi, lighted earthen lamps and offered prayers at the famous Ma Danteshwari temple in the district headquarters town of Dantewada, wishing a long life for the Congress youth icon on his 40th birthday, before setting out on the 80-km march through thickly forested region, considered the red zone.
The march plans to touch Chintalnar, where 76 security personnel were killed by the ultras on April 6, and Chingawara, where the rebels blew up a passenger bus killing 34 people on May 17, apparently to highlight growing Maoist menace in the state.
The padyatra is scheduled to conclude at Sukhma town on June 25.
“Our main objective behind the peace march is to bring to light plights of the local tribals, who have been sandwiched between the Naxals and police and living in perpetual fear from both sides for the past one decade. The innocent tribals have been caught in the crossfire between the Left-wing extremists and the police,” he told reporters on the occasion.
“We will mingle with the local tribals and interact with them to gather first hand information on their hardships, caused by the Maoist menace. We will seek solutions to their problems from themselves only,” he added.
The youths plan to spend nights in the huts of the tribals during the period.
He, however, made it clear that there was absolutely no political motive behind the programme. “The basic intent is to win the trust of the local tribals,” he added.
Incidentally, the 32-year-old, a practising lawyer in Chhattisgarh high court, is reportedly lobbying hard to take charge of state youth Congress, which is likely to be reconstituted in the near future.
His image, sullied after the CBI named him as prime accused in the murder of state treasurer of Nationalist Congress Party Ramavatar Jaggi in 2003, however, comes in the way of his making debut in politics.