Union Home Minister Amit Shah is all set to flag off the Bharatiya Janata Party's 'Jan Ashirwad Yatra' on September 3 from Chitrakoot in Madhya Pradesh’s Satna, which is going to witness elections later this year. While announcing the Yatra during a press conference, Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar and state unit Chief VD Sharma also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has already been invited to address a workers' meeting to mark the culmination of the yatra in Bhopal on September 25, which is also the birth anniversary of stalwart Deendayal Upadhyaya, reported news agency PTI.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will participate for a few hours on each day of the yatra, said Tomar, who is also the party's MP election management committee convenor.
The Jan Ashirwad Yatra will be taken out from different parts of the state, and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has also been invited to flag off four legs of the initiative, said Sharma, PTI reported.
The Madhya Pradesh BJP Chief said, "Five committees have been formed for five Yatras. Its state convenor is MP Minister Bhupendra Singh. These yatras will cover more than 10,500 kilometres in 210 of the state's 230 Assembly seats and public meetings will take place en route.”
"Though the Yatra will reach Bhopal on September 21, the formal culmination will be on September 25 to coincide with Karyakarta Mahakumbh. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been invited to address the workers at the Karyakarta Mahakumbh,” he added, as quoted by PTI.
Talking to reporters, Tomar also commented on Chouhan announcing several schemes for women on Sunday as the move came sometime after the Congress made public a list of poll promises. Tomar said his party stood for the welfare of the poor, Dalits, and women and wanted to empower them.
Chouhan said women will get Rs 1,250 as financial aid under Ladli Behna Yojana from October, and cooking gas cylinders for Rs 450 in August. Tomar also said he was confident his party would win with a comfortable majority in the elections.
As per PTI's report, Tomar did not provide a direct response to a media question about Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia's absence from BJP's poll panels in MP so far. He said the party's performance would be remarkable in the Gwalior-Chambal region, where the latter is a prominent figure.
A rebellion led by Scindia had brought down the Congress party's government in March 2020 and paved the way for the BJP's return in the state.