'Punch against hatred': Boxer Vijender Singh latest to join Rahul at Bharat Jodo

Boxer Vijender Singh became the latest eminent personality to join the Congress's Bharat Jodo Yatra on Saturday and he was seen marching alongside Rahul Gandhi in Haryana's Karnal. Apart from Vijender Singh, several other celebrities, including stand-up comic Kunal Kamra, actors Pooja Bhatt and Swara Bhasker, among others have been photographed marching with Rahul Gandhi during the grand old party's foot march, which aims to cover across 3,700 km across India. Actor-politician Kamal Haasan, former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan, ex RAW chief AS Dulat have been among others who have joined the Kanyakumari to Kashmir mass connect programme.

On Twitter, Vijender Singh and the Congress shared photos of the Yatra. "Haryanvi Ha Dabya Koni Karde," tweeted the boxer in the local language along with a photo, which also had Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's pet dog 'Luna' in the frame. The grand old party, meanwhile, shared the picture with a tacit jibe at the BJP. "Ek punch nafrat ke khilaaf (A punch against hatred)," it wrote and the post was re-tweeted by Vijender Singh where both Gandhi and him are seen posing with fists for the camera.

The photograph also drew interesting reactions from other quarters. "Here comes the Haryana boy," tweeted Shubham Rathi of the Bharat Kisan Union or the BKU in reference to Vijender Singh.

The Congress's Bharat Jodo Yatra is set to conclude in a few weeks in Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar. Ever since its start in September, the grand old party and Rahul Gandhi have been targeting the BJP, saying that the mass contact programme was launched to fight the hatred being spread by the ruling party. Gandhi has also been raising issues of unemployment and inflation among others.

It is being viewed as the party's effort to regain the lost ground after back-to-back electoral setbacks since 2014. But the party's Jairam Ramesh on Saturday said it has nothing to do with the 2024 national elections.