Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will address two rallies in Maharashtra - on November 10 and 18 - as part of his 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' that will arrive in the state on Monday, a senior party leader said.
The yatra that began on September 7 from Kanyakumari, is scheduled to reach Madnur Naka at Deglur in Maharashtra's Nanded district from neighbouring Telangana at 7 pm on November 7.
"Rahul Gandhi will address two rallies during the yatra in Maharashtra. He will address the first rally on November 10 in Nanded district, while the second one will be held on November 18 at Shegaon in Buldhana district," senior Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat, who is the state coordinator for the yatra, said.
The Bharat Jodo Yatra, the Congress's mass contact initiative, will traverse through 15 Assembly and 6 parliamentary constituencies in the state during its 14-day sojourn. It will cover a distance of 382 kms across five districts before entering Madhya Pradesh on November 20.
After its arrival in Nanded on Monday evening, the yatra will resume at 6.30 am the next day from Deglur bus stand in the district. It will proceed through Nanded district for four days and enter Hingoli district on November 11, Washim district on November 15, Akola district on November 16 and Buldhana district on November 18, party sources said.
Thorat, who recently visited Nanded district to oversee the preparations for the yatra, said elaborate arrangements have been made in the state for it. Another Congress leader said, "More than 100 prominent personalities from different walks of life will participate in the yatra."
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar is likely to take part in the foot-march on November 9. The state Congress leadership plans to highlight the participation of the NCP and the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena in the yatra as show of solidarity of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
(With PTI Inputs)
