Rahul Gandhi Wades Into Bihar Ponds, Highlights Farmers’ Plight

Katihar, August 23

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday expanded the ambit of his ongoing ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ by stepping into roadside ponds in Katihar district to interact with makhana (foxnut) cultivators and listen to their problems.

The yatra, launched to protest alleged anomalies in the Statewide Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls that saw the deletion of over 65 lakh voters, took a socio-economic turn as Rahul sought to connect the struggle of cultivators with the people’s right to vote.

Rahul, accompanied by RJD leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, Jharkhand agriculture minister Shilpi Neha Tirkey and Purnea MP Pappu Yadav, marched from Naugachia in Bhagalpur towards Katihar. On spotting farmers at Simaria, he rolled up his trousers and entered the pond to engage with them.

The Congress leader spoke to cultivators Madan Sahni and Vijay Bhagat about marketing hurdles, middlemen exploitation, and lack of loan and insurance facilities. He promised that if the INDIA bloc came to power, makhana farmers would be able to sell directly in wider markets without middlemen.

Later posting on social media platform X, Rahul lambasted the Centre and Bihar government, saying:
“Bihar produces 90% of the world’s makhana, but farmers get less than 1% of the profit. The fruit sells for ₹1,000–₹2,000 per kilo in big cities, yet Dalit and backward cultivators remain trapped in poverty while profits go to 1% middlemen. The ‘vote chor’ government has neither given them income nor justice.”
He further accused the Modi and Nitish Kumar governments of making “big speeches with zero delivery on the ground,” and said that the right to vote and right to livelihood were inseparable.

The day’s march moved through the Kadwa Assembly constituency before heading to Katihar town, where INDIA bloc supporters lined the route with flags and slogans of “Vote chor, gaddi chhor.” The yatra is scheduled to halt in Purnea for the night.

The 16-day, 1,300 km march, which began from Sasaram on August 17, will culminate with a rally in Patna on September 1. Several Opposition leaders including Priyanka Gandhi, M.K. Stalin, Siddaramaiah, Revanth Reddy, Hemant Soren and Akhilesh Yadav are expected to join in the coming days.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

fourteen + eight =