Padayatra is the key to many a wins

Hyderabad: Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy was the first politician in recent times who embark-ed on a padayatra to revive the chances of the Congress after it suffered a huge defeat against N. Chandrababu Naidu’s TD in 1999. YSR walked 1,475 km across AP, and eventually brought the party back in power in 2004.

In a bid to resurrect the fortunes of the TD, Mr Naidu embarked on a 2,800-km padayatra thro-ugh the length and brea-dth of AP. For someone who was dubbed hi-tech CM, the padayatra was apparently an attempt to reconnect with the real world and farmers. As a result, Mr Naidu won the 2014 elections and became Chief Minister.

YSRC president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy followed in the footsteps of his father. In a move to reclaim his lost political ground and redeem the situation for his party, Mr Reddy embarked on a 3,648 km padayatra, the longest by any politician.

So, is the padayatra the route to be the Chief Minister of the state? Have our netas decoded padayatra as the formula to success?   

Former MLC and political commentator Prof. K. Nageshwar said the padayatra alone cannot bring any leader into power. Citing the example of TRS president K. Chandrasekhar Rao who became Chief Minister of Telangana state without going on a padayatra, Prof. Nageshwar said that a comprehensive victory is directly proportional to the promises made and believability of the leader.

“Along with the padayatra, there were several other schemes that these netas had promised including waiver of farmer loans, free power, etc. These leaders seem to have taken up these padayatras with great determination,” Prof. Nageshwar said.

Political strategist Phani Bhushan had a different take. He said leaders like YSR, Mr Naidu became charismatic only after they leveraged the power of the padayatra. “When Jagan embarked on his padayatra, his political image was not at its peak. But his image grew multifold after the walkathon, which helped him reach out to the masses. Apart from bringing him closer to people, the padayatra enabled him to touch neutral voters and enlighten them,” Mr Bhushan said.

While analysts feel that leaders relish unleashing the potential of the padayatra,  apparently this phenomenon is not a new one. Political analyst V. Prakash said that in AP N.T. Rama Rao was the first to commence a yatra on his Chaitanya Ratham in 1982. Other leaders followed suit, but in different ways.

“The primary objective of any yatra is to listen to people’s problems. Naturally it establishes an instant connect with people who then hold the leader dearer. The padayatra is a gruelling proposition and not everyone can attempt it. Only a leader with great character and charm can pull it off,” Mr Prakash said.