Patna, Aug 18 (IANS) As INDIA Bloc leaders, including Congress MP and Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, launched a 1,300 km-long ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ from Bihar’s Sasaram against the Election Commission of India (ECI)’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter list, former Bihar Cabinet Minister and elder son of RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav, Tej Pratap Yadav, on Monday dismissed the initiative. He said the issues raised by his brother Tejashwi Yadav and LoP Rahul Gandhi would yield no results.

Speaking to IANS, Tej Pratap Yadav said, “LoP Rahul Gandhi and Tejashwi Yadav are presenting their issues with this ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’. Nothing will happen with the issues raised by them. The real issues should be education, health, and unemployment. The ECI is doing its work, and these leaders are doing theirs, but people are getting confused with this Yatra. People should stay away from such activities, as they only divert attention from core issues. Ultimately, it benefits the Opposition.”

The inaugural event of the yatra was attended by the RJD chief, former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar Tejashwi Yadav, and several other INDIA Bloc leaders.

The march will cover 25 districts of Bihar, as the Congress intensifies its campaign against what it calls “vote chori” and seeks to create public awareness against the ongoing voter list revision. The 16-day journey will culminate in Patna on September 1 with a massive rally.

On preparations for the upcoming Bihar Assembly polls, he said, “We are fully prepared. I have already announced that I will contest from Mahua constituency. I have won from here earlier, and I have worked for development by building roads and medical colleges. My plan is to make Mahua a district. Going forward, I will work to bring an engineering college here as well. That is my focus.”

He also highlighted the formation of his new political platform, Team Tej Pratap.

“If anyone wants to contest elections, I will extend support to them through Team Tej Pratap,” he added.

With Assembly polls just two months away, political activity across Bihar has gained momentum. In a recent move, Tej Pratap Yadav announced his first candidate under Team Tej Pratap. Social worker Jai Prakash Yadav, popularly known as ‘Gandhi Yadav’, has been declared the candidate from the Ghosi Assembly constituency in Jehanabad district.

The announcement was made at a gathering at Tej Pratap’s residence, where Jai Prakash Yadav formally joined the organisation along with hundreds of his supporters.

“The great people of the Ghosi Assembly constituency have chosen Jai Prakash Yadav. This is commendable, and I salute the people of Jehanabad,” Tej Pratap said while introducing him.

He had stated that Jai Prakash Yadav’s entry marks the beginning of wider participation in his newly-launched organisation.

“Many more people are in the pipeline and will be joining us soon. We will continue working to connect more individuals with Team Tej Pratap,” he had said.

–IANS

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