The Congress on Friday said that the Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra will be flagged off from a private ground in Manipur's Thoubal district on January 14, instead of state capital Imphal.
Congress's Manipur president Keisham Meghachandra said that permission was sought to begin the Yatra from the Hapta Kangjeibung ground in Imphal but the state government gave the go-ahead with certain conditions, forcing to move the venue around 34 km at the last moment.
"We had proposed to the state government on January 2 that Hapta Kangjeibung public ground in Imphal be allowed for flagging off the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. We had also announced that the Yatra will start from Imphal, and culminate in Mumbai," he said.
"We met Chief Minister N Biren Singh in this regard on January 10 but were told that the permission will not be given. Later that night, an order was issued which gave permission for Hapta Kangjeibung ground but with a limited number of participants," he added.
Meghachandra said that a team of the state Congress again met Chief Secretary Vineet Joshi in the presence of DGP Rajiv Singh, and the deputy commissioner (DC) and SP of Imphal East.
"We were told that not more than 1,000 people will be allowed at the venue. As the permission was not given, we were in an alarming situation. Late on Thursday night, Thoubal DC gave permission for flagging off the Yatra from a private land in Khongjom area of the district," he said.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge will flag off the Yatra from there, he said.
Another state Congress leader said that there would be no change in the route even though the venue had to be changed.
After beginning in Manipur on January 14, the Yatra will culminate in Mumbai on March 20. It is scheduled to cover 6,713 km in 67 days while passing through 110 districts in 15 states.
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