The intelligentsia in Odisha is of the view that the Bharat Jodo Yatra led by Rahul Gandhi would certainly achieve the goal of creating unity and protecting the spirit of federalism.

Not all of them, though, agree on whether it will mark a turnaround in the fortunes of the Congress.

“The Yatra would certainly pave the way for a better India. All should remember that a padayatra or a yatra always builds opinion. Here, Rahul is not asking for votes at this moment. He is talking about brotherhood, amity and an end to endless hatred. He is going on foot along with a group of people. If one analyses the annals of the history of padayatra starting from ancient India to the Bhakti movement to Mahatma Gandhi, it had its impact in a different tone and texture. Why can’t Rahul’s padayatra have the same impact,” argued Prof Basant Mallick of Utkal University.

Mallick said many scholars and reformers had undertaken yatras to highlight various issues.

“Adi Shankaracharya had undertaken yatra across India walking down uneven dusty roads, soggy fields, dense forest, muddy terrain to spiritually awaken India. He moved across India and helped in consolidating the doctrine of Advaita Vedanta (non-dualism) and Hinduism by setting up four mutts (monasteries) all over India — Badrinath (Uttarakhand) in north, Dwarka (Gujarat) in the west, Gobardhan Peeth in Puri and Sringeri (Karnataka) in south. It has united India,” opined Manoj Rath, a scholar and also the spokesperson of Puri Shankaracharya Math.

Retired political science professor Brahamananda Satpathy said: “All yatras were launched with a certain goal and objective starting from Shankaracharya to Mahatma Gandhi to Sunil Dutt to Lal Krishna Advani. All had attained their objectives. All the yatras had a socio-cultural impact as they were mass contact programmes.”

Mahatma Gandhi’s Dandi Yatra which lasted from March 12, 1930, to April 6, 1930, that spanned 385km turned out to be direct action against tax resistance and non-violent protest against the British salt monopoly.

Congress MP Sunil Dutt’s 78-day padayatra from Mumbai to Punjab at the height of the militancy in 1987 had its impact on bringing peace to Punjab. Dutt also walked from Nagasaki to Hiroshima in Japan in 1988 and was able to create a public opinion on global disarmament. Lal Krishna Advani embarked on a yatra in the 1990s that had an impact.

Satpathy said: “Here the Congress is undertaking the Yatra with some specific objectives that include reforming and rejuvenating the Congress. The party would gain its mass appeal. The Yatra also aims to identify those who are not with the Congress.”

Former vice-chairman of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) Justice Manoranjan Mohanty said: “There is a constant attack on the spirit of federalism by the Centre. The ruling party is using central agencies like CBI and ED to raid people’s houses, infringing the rights of the state. The padayatra will certainly help to create public opinion against all such misuses.”

He said: “We must not forget to protect the gold standard that was given to us in the form of the Constitution. We need to protect its spirit. It remains a question mark whether the Yatra will rejuvenate the Congress party or not but one thing is sure it will create a public opinion which would exert pressure on the government not to tamper with the spirit of federalism.”

However, retired professor Surya Narayan Mishra said: “Congress needs to do introspection. Otherwise, such an exercise will have no meaning.”