Posters tweeted by businessman Robert Vadra, husband of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
Businessman Robert Vadra, the husband of Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi, today shared posters of the party's 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' with his photo on them, leading to sarcastic comments from the BJP and some questions about what his plans are.
"It's quite amusing that Robert Vadra is joining the Yatra," said BJP's former union minister Ravishankar Prasad in an interaction with reporters, "Will he claim to speak against corruption now?"
The tweet by Mr Vadra showed posters being put up with his photo next to those of his wife and Congress's main face Rahul Gandhi, besides those of his in-laws, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and former PM Rajiv Gandhi. The posters also had photos of the apparent sponsor, JB Abhijith, identified as a leader of Congress wing National Students' Union of India.
Mr Vadra is accused of being a beneficiary of nepotism and corruption by Congress governments, though he has said he's attacked unfairly because of his family connections. The Congress has, over the years, kept up a stand that Mr Vadra is a "private individual" and the allegations of benefitting him are "political vendetta".
In that light, the overtly political posters in Mr Vadra's tweet — with Congress poll symbol 'hand' on the top — are a conversation starter. He has been putting out social media posts supporting the Congress in the past, but this is being seen as pitch to stand next to the Gandhi family on the political stage.
Unsurprisingly, in replies to his tweet, some Twitter users asked if he had joined the party. He did not respond.
In this file photo, Robert Vadra is seen accompanying his wife, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
Similar questions were asked before the 2019 elections when posters in his hometown Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, "welcomed" him to contest from there. He had then told NDTV: "It's not OK that because I am a part of this family I should just go and adorn a certain kind of attire and be a part of the surrounding and say, 'Hey, I am also somebody important or significant.' I have to earn it. That's what my mother taught me. That if you earn it yourself, it will last longer."
As for the 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' or Unite India March, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi will launch it from Kanyakumari today. The 3,500-km yatra will be covered in nearly 150 days.
Rahul Gandhi started his day with a visit to his father Rajiv Gandhi's memorial in Tamil Nadu's Sriperumbudur, where he was killed in a suicide attack by a Sri Lanka-based extremist organisation in 1991.
Mr Gandhi will walk all the way from Kanyakumari to Kashmir, where the yatra will conclude. He will be staying in a shipping container — it has a bed, toilet and an air-conditioner. Such containers have been set up for other 'Bharat Yatris' as well, who will walk the entire route along with Mr Gandhi, sources said.
"I lost my father to the politics of hate and division," he later tweeted, "I will not lose my beloved country to it too. Love will conquer hate. Hope will defeat fear. Together, we will overcome."