It is yatra galore in Uttar Pradesh as major political parties vie with each other to catch the voters' eyes ahead of the crucial Assembly elections due early near year.
With ruling Samajwadi Party's Mulayam Sandesh Yatra already criss-crossing the state and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi traversing from Deoria to Delhi to woo farmers through his Kisan Yatra, BJP today unfolded plans to take out four 'parivrtan yatras" beginning November 5 from different parts of the state.
"The Parivartan yatras which start from November 5 will culminate with a 'parivartan sabha' in Lucknow on the eve of 92nd birthday of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on December 24," state BJP chief Keshav Prasad said.
The yatras will start from Saharanpur, Lalitpur, Sonebhadra and Ballia and cover all parts of the state. They will be flagged off by senior BJP leaders, including party chief Amit Shah.
After the culmination of his Kisan Yatra in two phases, the Congress Vice President has planned "Rahul Sandesh Yatra".
It is a "massive" 'jan jagaran abhiyan' (public awareness campaign) to reach out to farmers, a local Congress leader said.
During his 25-day march from Deoria in eastern UP, the Congress leader connected with around 25,000 households per block in a do-or-die effort to regain lost moorings in state politics.
The second phase of Samajwadi Party's "Mulayam Sandesh
Yatra" has covered 39 assembly constituencies in western Uttar Pradesh.
"The purpose of this yatra is to inform the public that the Samajwadi Party government in Uttar Pradesh has fulfilled all the promises it made in its election manifesto," a senior SP leader said.
The first phase of the yatra, from September 10 to 20, was launched from Lucknow and covered 73 assembly seats.
The Sandesh Yatra would cover all the 403 assembly seats in the next two phases.
A hi-tech vehicle is being used in 'Mulayam's Sandesh Rath'.
The modified bus has WiFi, makeshift stage with a podium that rises with the help of a lift whenever a leader has to address a gathering, a state-of-art interiors with generator backup for campaigning during evening light.
Rahul too used a similar vehicle during his roadshows.
Another yatra -- Dhamma Chetna Yatra -- will conclude at Kanpur tomorrow at an event which will witness large presence of Dalits who have converted to Buddhism, seen as yet another attempt by the party to reach out to the community in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh.
BJP chief Amit Shah will attend the closing ceremony of the six-month long Dhamma Chetna Yatra and felicitate 110 monks at the event.
Kanpur BJP chief Surendra Maithani said the Yatra is, however, not related to the upcoming elections in the state.
