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Transcript/Script((PLAYBOOK SLUG: INDIA OPPOSITION MARCH
HEADLINE: Will India’s Opposition Leader Rahul Gandhi’s Cross-Country March Revive the Congress Party?
TEASER: The march’s impact will be tested when nine states go to the polls this year ahead of next year’s general election
PUBLISHED AT: Tuesday, 01/31/2023 at 8:15am
BYLINE: Anjana Pasricha
DATELINE: NEW DELHI
VIDEOGRAPHER: P. Pallavi
PRODUCER:
SCRIPT EDITORS: Salem Solomon, wpm
VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA Original, AP, AFP,
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __TV X RADIO __
TRT: 3:04
VID APPROVED BY: MAS
TYPE: TVPKG
EDITOR NOTES:))
((INTRO))
[[In India, Rahul Gandhi, leader of the main opposition Congress Party has concluded a five-month long foot march through the country, hoping to resurrect the political fortunes of the party that has been pushed to the sidelines in the last decade since the rise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party. Anjana Pasricha in New Delhi reports on the impact of the march.]]
((NARRATOR))
“Unite India” — that was the rallying cry as India’s opposition Congress Party leader, Rahul Gandhi, walked across 12 states. Wrapping up the mammoth five-month long foot march in Kashmir’s capital, Srinagar, he said his goal was to counter divisive politics.
((Rahul Gandhi, Congress Party Leader)) ((in Hindi - AP))
“The ideology that wants to break the nation, we need to stand against it together. Not with hatred, that is not our way, but with love.”
((NARRATOR))
Held ahead of general elections due next year, the “Unity March” aimed to rejuvenate the Congress Party that ruled India for decades, but been pushed to the margins since Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party rose to power in 2014. While critics and opposition parties accuse the BJP of polarizing India, Modi remains hugely popular amid a rising tide of Hindu nationalism.
Rahul Gandhi, the scion of the famous Gandhi dynasty, has often been called an ineffective opponent to Modi.
But Gandhi attracted larger crowds than expected.
((Neerja Chowdhury, Political Analyst))
“People said that they were very taken by the fact that somebody had come to them walking to see their problems and that had ‘wowed’ them.”
((NARRATOR))
Along the way, Gandhi was joined by farmers, students and activists as he raised issues like rising prices and unemployment.
((Yasir Chaudhary, Law Student)) ((Male in Hindi, AP))
“A man has come out of his comfort zone and is walking on the roads of the country. You can see that thousands have joined the unity march. We want change and we hope to get it.”
((NARRATOR))
The march emulated an old political tradition of traversing the country on foot. Gandhi tried to identify with ordinary people — wearing only a T-shirt even in winter and spending the night in cabins made of shipping containers.
((Neerja Chowdhury, Political Analyst))
“I think what it’s achieved is a rebranding, changing his image, making him come across as a more serious politician and not one who will just run away, because it has taken incredible stamina to walk 3,500 kilometers, almost 25 kilometers a day.”
((NARRATOR))
The march’s impact will be tested when nine states go to the polls this year ahead of next year’s general election. The Congress party was routed in the last two national elections and the march can only be the start of efforts to revive the ailing party.
((Neerja Chowdhury, Political Analyst))
“People are viewing him with new eyes, but the electoral gains that is still a long way to go.”
((NARRATOR))
While the march has enhanced Gandhi’s popularity, analysts say that Prime Minister Modi remains far ahead and is most likely to win a third term in office.
((Anjana Pasricha for VOA News, New Delhi))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateJanuary 31, 2023 08:40 EST
BylineAnjana Pasricha
Brand / Language ServiceUS Agency for Global Media, Voice of America - English
