Urmila Matondkar, an actor, and politician, joined Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra this morning as it began at Nagrota, a military town in Jammu.
Ms. Matondkar joined Rahul Gandhi immediately after the march began near the army garrison at around 8 am. They were greeted by Congress supporters and workers who had gathered in front of the road along the march’s route. Urmila Matondkar, 48, joined the Shiv Sena in 2020 after leaving the Congress in September 2019 after only six months of membership.
Ms. Matondkar was talking to Gandhi while they marched while wearing a beanie cap and a traditional Kashmiri pheran (loose gown) in a cream colour.
Renowned novelist Perumal Murugan, the head of the J&K Pradesh Congress committee Vikar Rasool Wani, his predecessor GA Mir, and former minister Abdul Hamid Karra all joined them while carrying the tricolour. The yatra, which began on September 7 in Kanyakumari, entered Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday from Punjab and arrived in Jammu city on Monday.
On the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, the march is slated to stop for two nights at Ramban and Banihal before coming to an end on January 30 in Srinagar with a large rally at the Sher-e-Kashmir Cricket Stadium.
