The ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’, spearheaded by Congress alongside Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) is set to conclude on Monday with a massive opposition-led foot march in Bihar’s capital, Patna. Led by Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, the final event will feature a symbolic procession from Gandhi Maidan to the Dr B R Ambedkar Statue at Ambedkar Park, marking the culmination of a state-wide mobilisation campaign focused on protecting voting rights.
A powerful show of unity by the opposition’s INDIA bloc is expected, with leaders from across the country scheduled to participate. These include RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav, CPI(ML) Liberation’s Dipankar Bhattacharya, Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, NCP working president Supriya Sule, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Sanjay Raut, CPI(M)’s M A Baby, CPI’s D Raja, TMC’s Yusuf Pathan and Lalitesh Tripathi. The campaign drew national attention, with support coming in from the Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana, as well as senior leaders such as Priyanka Gandhi and Samajwadi Party’s Akhilesh Yadav.
Ahead of the concluding event, Rahul Gandhi addressed a rally in Arrah, where he called the yatra the beginning of a larger political movement. “Bihar is a land where revolutions have taken place. The response to the Voter Adhikar Yatra has proved that another revolution has begun here. In the days to come, this will engulf the whole country,” he declared.
The yatra, which began on 17 August from Sasaram, has traversed more than 110 assembly constituencies across 25 districts, covering areas such as Bhagalpur, Katihar, Gaya, Darbhanga, and West Champaran. At every stop, the central message has been clear: resisting what the opposition claims is a systematic effort to suppress votes in Bihar.
“Remember, if your vote is stolen, you will be robbed of your future,” Gandhi repeatedly told crowds along the route. “Your right to vote has been bestowed upon you by the Constitution, which is the embodiment of the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi and Babasaheb Ambedkar. We must protect it,” he added.
Travelling through towns and villages in an open jeep, Gandhi was joined for most of the journey by RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav, CPI-ML’s Dipankar Bhattacharya, and VIP leader Mukesh Sahani. Their public display of unity was underscored by repeated chants of “Vote Chor, Gaddi Chhor” (Vote thief, leave the chair), which echoed through rural and urban Bihar.
The campaign’s primary focus has been the alleged misuse of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Opposition parties claim that around 65 lakh names have been deleted from Bihar’s draft rolls under this exercise, disproportionately impacting marginalised voters. Although the Election Commission published the list of deleted names following a Supreme Court order, the opposition has continued to accuse it of colluding with the BJP.
Congress general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal praised the public’s response, saying, “The fear people had in their hearts needed comforting, and the yatra came in as a ray of hope against the blatant destruction of democracy being orchestrated in the name of SIR. The people of Bihar have given unprecedented support to this yatra. It has become a milestone in Bihar’s rich history of people’s movements.”
Despite its strong reception, the yatra has not been without controversy. In Darbhanga, a video surfaced in which a speaker allegedly used abusive language towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi from the stage. The incident led to confrontations between BJP and Congress workers in Patna, during which Congress accused BJP supporters of attacking and vandalising its Sadaqat Ashram headquarters.
Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera commented on the broader spirit of the campaign, saying, “This yatra is like a religious pilgrimage in which people of all faiths are taking part. It may conclude in Patna, but it marks the beginning of a new journey towards protecting democracy.”
As the yatra prepares to conclude in Patna on Monday, Rahul Gandhi has signalled that the campaign is far from over. “This is not the end. It’s the beginning of a movement to ensure not one vote is stolen in India,” he said.
