The government is indulging in mass pickpocketing by diverting the attention of people and then looting them, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said on Thursday after his Bharat Jodo Yatra entered Jammu and Kashmir.
Addressing a rally in Lakhanpur, Gandhi said he had walked from Kanyakumari to Kashmir and talked to thousands of people
"The BJP and RSS have spread hatred. I earlier thought it ran deep but it does not and is mainly seen on television," Gandhi said in his first stop in the union territory, about 90 km from Jammu.
He listed hatred, violence, unemployment and price rise as the main issues confronting the country and blamed the media for not highlighting them.
Criticising the media for not focusing on the right issues, he said it uses topics such as Bollywood stars Aishwarya Rai and Akshay Kumar to divert the attention of people.
Injecting a personal note, Gandhi said his ancestors belonged to this land and he felt he was returning home.
"I am going back to my roots, I know the suffering of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and come to you with a bowed head," he said.
Gandhi said he had been walking about seven hours a day, covering 25 km each day, but nobody was tired as some people had predicted. "I later felt we are not feeling tired because people are pushing us forward."
"If someone falls, he is supported within seconds... nobody is asking anyone what is your religion," he said.
Gandhi started walking from Kanyakumari in September. The Bharat Jodo Yatra is scheduled to conclude in Srinagar on January 30.
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