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home > News/Analysis  > Yatras   Gujarat Gaurav Yatras Now Renamed as Campaign Yatra

Gujarat Gaurav Yatras Now Renamed as Campaign Yatra


Eleventh Phase: From Dec 02

Ninth Phase: From Nov 11

Eighth Phase: From Oct. 31

Renamed as Campaign Yatra From Oct. 29

Seventh Phase: From Oct. 25

Sixth Phase: From Oct. 19

Fifth Phase: From Oct. 16

Fourth Phase: From Ambaji on Oct. 5

Third Phase: From Sep. 21
  • Irked by the low power subsidy announced by the government, the hostile weavers of south Gujarat have decided to greet the Gaurav rath with protests.

  • - Will traverse 16 tribal-dominated segments after the kickoff from Unai's Sita Mata temple

  • Second Phase: From Sep. 14-17, 2002
  • Flagged off by Union Minister for Social Welfare Satnarain Jatiya from Ahmedabad district's Jhajharka, a place revered by Dalits in the state.

  • First Phase: From Sep. 8, 2002
  • Began in the southern town of Phagvel about 80 km from Ahmedabad

  • Passed through Phagvel, Kapadvanj, Dehgam, Bayad, Talod, Prantij, Himatnagar, Vijapur, Mansa, Kadi, Detroj, Kalol, Becharaj, Modhera and Chanasma.

  • Brief background
  • To criss-cross through the state for 45 days

  • The parade was first postponed in July and slated for September 3. On Sunday it was put off until September 7

  • "The procession will instil in the people of Gujarat pride and self-confidence, which they lost after the sectarian violence," Modi said.

  • Gujarat Gaurav Yatras / Campaign Yatra / Vijay Yatra in Gujarat in the News

  • Modi kicks off Eleventh phase of Gaurav Yatra
    Outlookindia.com, December 2, 2002
    Gujarat caretaker Chief Minister Narendra Modi today kicked off the eleventh phase of his "Gavrav yatra" saying that his main objective was to "teach a lesson to messengers of death" who have disrupted peace in the state.

  • No full stops for Modi's yatra
    By Amulya Ganguli, The Hindustan Times, December 2, 2002
    Narendra Modi has already been awarded victory in Gujarat by some pollsters and commentators. Their contention is that the prevailing anti-Muslim sentiments among Hindus cannot but take him to success. But this argument is not irrefutable. Even a cursory look at the state’s recent past casts doubt on the claim.

  • Govt foils VHP's attempt to take out yatra
    Times News Network, November 17, 2002
    AHMEDABAD: The VHP’s defiance of the ban on its yatra by the Election Commission proved short-lived as its leaders, Pravin Togadia and Acharya Dharmendra, among others, were arrested on Sunday morning as they prepared to leave for Godhra to launch the controversial programme.

  • VHP to change form of yatra
    PTI, November 17, 2002
    NEW DELHI: The Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Sunday announced it would change the form of its 'Padpadshahi Yatra' in Gujarat following arrest of its senior leaders Praveen Togadia and Acharya Dharmendra but asserted it would maintain peace at all costs.

  • Govt foils VHP's attempt to take out yatra
    Times News Network, November 17, 2002
    AHMEDABAD: The VHP’s defiance of the ban on its yatra by the Election Commission proved short-lived as its leaders, Pravin Togadia and Acharya Dharmendra, among others, were arrested on Sunday morning as they prepared to leave for Godhra to launch the controversial programme.

  • Gujarat bars Togadia's march, blocks yatra
    Times News Network, November 17, 2002
    Gandhinagar/VADODARA: The Godhra administration on Saturday dismantled the stage erected by the VHP, banned the entry of its leaders Pravin Togadia and Acharya Dharmendra and set up check-posts at all entry points to prevent its workers from entering the district.

  • VHP yatra: Zero tolerance
    World watching, govt tells cops to follow EC line
    Milind Ghatwai, The Indian Express, November 17, 2002

    Godhra, November 16: The district administration issued prohibitory orders on Saturday banning the assembly of four or more persons in the entire Panchmahals and banned the entry of VHP leaders Pravin Togadia and Acharya Dharmendra to Godhra, where the Parishad plans to hold a dharma sabha on Sunday.

  • Govt cracks whip, VHP softens stand
    Vinay Menon/Rathin Das, Ahmedabad/Godhra, November 16, 2002
    The VHP climbed down, saying it would avoid a confrontation with the Gujarat administration. But it kept its rhetoric against Prime Minister AB Vajpayee and Chief Election Commissioner JM Lyngdoh going.

  • Honour EC directive: PM
    By Harish Khare, The Hindu, November 16, 2002
    New Delhi Nov. 15. Just a day after the Bharatiya Janata Party criticised the Election Commission for its decision to ban the Vishwa Hindu Parishad's proposed "yatras" in Gujarat, the Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, has stood by the Commission. "The Government of Gujarat has done the right thing by acting as per the directive of the Election Commission to prohibit religious processions,'' he said today.

  • VHP rejects appeal
    By Manas Dasgupta, The Hindu, November 16, 2002
    AHMEDABAD NOV. 15. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad today reaffirmed its decision to take out the controversial "vijay yatra" from Godhra on Sunday and threatened to make use of the train carnage to "arouse Hindutva." Rejecting the Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee's appeal to call off the yatra, the VHP international general secretary, Pravin Togadia, instead urged him to "protect the religious and fundamental rights of Hindus.''

  • PM backs EC, but VHP says it will go on
    Times News Network, November 15, 2002
    NEW DELHI: With the Vishwa Hindu Parishad rejecting Prime Minister Vajpayee's appeal to cancel its provocative Vijay Yatra in Gujarat, the stage is set for a confrontation between the Centre and the Sangh Parivar.

  • RSS flays Lyngdoh; directs cadres not to violate law
    Times News Network, November 15, 2002
    NEW DELHI: The RSS on Friday charged Chief Election Commissioner J M Lyngdoh with "crossing the limits of his jurisdiction" by asking the Gujarat government to ban the VHP yatra even as it advised its cadres "not to violate the law of the land."

  • Top VHP, Dal leaders' meet to discuss Yatra plans
    Press Trust of India, Ahmedabad, November 15, 2002
    With the Gujarat government having denied permission for the proposed padshahi yatra, top brass of VHP and Bajrang Dal are meeting here today to 'discuss further course of action'.

  • Gujarat refuses to permit VHP Yatra
    Vinay Menon Ahmedabad, The Hindustan Times, November 14, 2002
    The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) on Thursday declared it had no intention of obeying the Election Commission’s directive banning religious rallies in Gujarat. The VHP said it will not postpone or cancel the controversial Vijay Yatra, which it plans to roll across the state.

  • No go for VHP
    Editorial, The Hindustan Times, November 14, 2002
    The Election Commission’s decision calling for a ban on the VHP yatra in Gujarat means yet another setback for the Narendra Modi government.

    This time, it cannot even protest against the move since the decision was based on a state government report acknowledging that the yatra would lead to communal trouble. Yet, there can be no doubt that Mr Modi and his party would have dearly loved the VHP to do what they cannot because of the model code of conduct — accentuate the communal polarisation in the BJP’s favour.

  • EC bans VHP yatra citing Gujarat Govt. report
    By J. Venkatesan, The Hindu, November 14, 2002
    NEW DELHI Nov. 13. Apprehending large-scale communal violence and disturbance to communal harmony, on the basis of the Gujarat Government's assessment, the Election Commission today imposed a ban on the proposed "Vijay yatra" by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad in Gujarat from Friday, November 15.

  • VHP to defy yatra ban; BJP plays it safe
    Times News Network, November 13, 2002
    AHMEDABAD: A defiant Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Wednesday said that its yatra would go ahead despite the ban imposed by the Election Commission even as the state government said it would have to obey the directive of the EC not to allow the programme to go ahead.

  • VHP criticises Lyngdoh, discusses 'alternative'
    The Hindu, November 14, 2002
    Ahmedabad Nov. 13. Leaders of the Gujarat unit of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad tonight discussed a possible alternative to its proposed controversial `Vijay yatra' across the State in the light of the Election Commission's ban on it.

  • Godhra to be theme of VHP's yatra
    Times News Network, November 12, 2002
    AHMEDABAD: The Vishwa Hindu Parishad has altered its plan slightly on its controversial yatra in Gujarat by announcing that it will launch the campaign from Godhra on November 17, instead of from Akshardham, as announced earlier.

  • VHP’s Gujarat agenda: Yatra, vitriol, votes
    Pradeep Kaushal, The Indian Express, November 12, 2002
    New Delhi, November 11: The VHP today made public its agenda for the Gujarat elections, pushing itself towards a confrontation with the authorities as well as the BJP. The outfit announced a yatra for ‘‘public awakening’’, despite an Election Commission directive against it, and demanded a share of seats from the BJP to contest polls.

  • Ninth phase of Gaurav Yatra from Monday
    Times News Network, November 08, 2002
    AHMEDABAD: The two-day ninth phase of BJP sponsored Gujarat Gaurav Yatra led by Chief Minister Narendra Modi will commence from temple town of Dakor in Kaira district and reach Vadodara via Godhra assembly constituency, and culminate with a public meeting in Surat on Tuesday.

  • VHP yatra to prop up BJP prospects
    Anil Pathak, Times News Network, November 01, 2002
    AHMEDABAD: The VHP’s reported differences with Prime Minister Vajpayee notwithstanding, the Parishad looks determined not to leave any stone unturned to ensure that the Hindutva upsurge in Gujarat translates into votes for the BJP on December 12.

  • Modi plays Sardar, Keshubhai angry Patel
    CM equates himself with Iron Man, Keshubhai takes not-so subtle dig
    Rohit Bhan & Hiral Dave, October 31, 2002

    Narendra Modi Anand, Rajkot, October 31: With huge cutouts of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel alongside his own, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi kicked off the last leg of his gaurav yatra and the first of the BJP’s election campaign from Karamsad near Anand, the birthplace of Sardar Patel today.

  • Grateful Modi’s war rolls
    Our Correspondent, The Telegraph, October 31, 2002
    Karamsad (Gujarat), Oct. 31: Calling upon youths to turn the December 12 Assembly election into a “dharma yudh”, the BJP today launched its poll campaign from Sardar Patel’s birthplace.

  • Modi’s Yatra to roll on under new name
    Express News Service, October 30, 2002
    New Delhi, October 29: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s Gaurav Yatra is not off. It is only getting a new name: Campaign Yatra. BJP general secretary Arun Jaitley said: ‘‘We will call it Campaign Yatra now. We see no reason to call it off.’’

  • Eighth phase of Gaurav Yatra from tomorrow
    PTI, Ahmedabad, Oct 30, 2002
    Switching gears into election mode, BJP would mobilise the youth force during the eighth phase of Chief Minister Narendra Modi's Gujarat Gaurav Yatra, beginning from Karamsad in Kheda district in Gujarat tomorrow.

  • BJP to turn Gaurav Yatra into poll juggernaut
    PTI, October 29, 2002
    NEW DELHI: Buoyed by the "overwhelming response" of the Gaurav Yatra in Gujarat, the BJP has decided to turn the controversial programme into its main campaign vehicle for the coming Assembly elections.

  • EC declares poll, caretaker Modi breathes easy
    Hiral Dave, The Indian Express, October 28, 2002
    Rajkot, October 28: GUJARAT Chief Minister Narendra Modi was grinning from ear to ear by today afternoon. The tired look on his face in Morbi, from where he began the third day of the 7th phase of his Gaurav Yatra, had disappeared by the time he reached Dhrol. The news that polls had been announced in the state seemed to have infused new life into him.

  • Next leg of Gaurav Yatra to begin from Shamlaji
    Times News Network, October 19, 2002
    AHMEDABAD: The three-day long sixth leg of the Gujarat Gaurav Yatra will start from Shamlaji on October 19 and will conclude with a public meeting at Nadiad on the third day.

  • Sixth phase of Gaurav Yatra from Oct 19
    PTI, October 17, 2002
    AHMEDABAD: The sixth phase of Chief Minister Narendra Modi-led Gaurav Yatra would begin from October 19 from Samraji temple in Sabarkanta and conclude after three days in Nadiad near Kheda district of Gujarat.

  • Fifth phase of Gaurav Yatra to commence from tomorrow
    Ahmedabad, PTI, Oct 15, 2002
    The fifth phase of BJP's Gaurav Yatra, piloted by Chief Minister Narendra Modi to highlight Gujarat's pride, would commence from Mahatma Gandhi's birth place, Porbander tomorrow.

  • A yatra of shame
    By A.G. Noorani, HindustanTimes.com, October 15, 2002
    It is, however, not amusing but disgusting to find the prime minister of India and his deputy expressing contrition abroad for the Gujarat massacres, while defending Narendra Modi at home. Atal Bihari Vajpayee won undying fame for his speech at Goa on April 12. But, he said in New York on September 13, with poetic delicacy, that the Gujarat riots were “not good”. He amplified, though, that “a situation should not be created at home which forces us to bow our heads in shame before others (abroad)”.

  • The Modi Road Show
    Dionne Bunsha in Gandhinagar, Frontline, Volume 19 - Issue 21, October 12 - 25, 2002
    Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi sets off on his `Gujarat Gaurav Yatra' again. Will the Akshardham sentiment fuel his campaign momentum?

  • Next phase of Gaurav Yatra to begin from October 16
    AHMEDABAD, OCT 12 (PTI)
    The fifth phase of Chief Minister Narendra Modi's 'Gujarat Gaurav Yatra', aimed at highlighting the state's pride, would begin from Porbander on October 16.

  • Journeyman Modi
    Dionne Bunsha, Frontline, Volume 19 - Issue 19, September 28 - October 11, 2002
    Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi rides on, spewing venom all the way. But will his game plan, with an eye on the elections, work?

  • Yatra: On final leg, Modi loses out on steam
    Express News Service, Radhanpur, October 6, 2002
    The reason Narendra Modi claims he is undertaking the Gaurav Yatra — to restore the pride of Gujarat — does not seem to go down well with people anymore. Except for a few new sentences, his Musharraf-bashing has become a cliche and the speeches are repetitive.

  • Modi takes detour to Ambaji via Rajasthan
    Sanjay Pandey, Times News Network, October 05, 2002
    AMBAJI: The Rajasthan police made unprecedented security arrangements for Chief Minister Narendra Modi, as he landed at the Abu Road helipad to launch the fourth leg of his Gaurav Yatra.

  • Yatra fourth leg: CM will have to contend with drought issue
    Rajiv Shah, Times News Network, October 05, 2002
    GANDHINAGAR: Chief Minister Narendra Modi's fourth leg of Gaurav Yatra will start from Ambaji in North Gujarat on Saturday, a pilgrimage centre surrounded by tens of villages affected by one of the worst droughts in recent years.

  • Gaurav Yatra: Phase IV commences from Sat
    Press Trust of India, Ahmedabad, October 4, 2002
    The fourth phase of BJP's Gaurav Yatra will commence from the temple township of Ambaji on Saturday. Modi will be resuming the yatra on his motorised chariot, equipped with a hydraulic elevator, in presence of party leaders like Union Minister Uma Bharati, BJP all India general secretary Anita Arya, state unit Chief Rajendrasinh Rana and state ministers,, party sources said on Saturday.

  • Gaurav yatra politics is out
    Neerja Chowdhury, The Indian Express, September 30, 2002
    Narendra Modi has given the credit to the ‘pseudo secularists’ and their restraint in the choice of language for the comparative peace in the wake of the attack on the Akshardham Temple. The truth, however, is that politics has undergone a change in the post-Akshardham phase. Today, BJP’s compulsions are very different from what they were in the post-Godhra period.

  • Gaurav Yatra may restart from Oct 5
    Anil Pathak, Times News Network , September 28, 2002
    AHMEDABAD: The fourth phase of BJP sponsored Gujarat Gaurav Yatra, which was postponed following the terrorist attack on Akshardham, will now re-start from Ambaji on October 5.

  • Hindu march postponed after Indian temple attack
    GANDHINAGAR, India, Sept 25 (Reuters)
    India's ruling Hindu nationalists delayed on Wednesday the last phase of a controversial political march in the western state of Gujarat after an attack on a Hindu temple left 33 people dead.

  • Modi reminds tribals about Godhra
    Times News Network, September 24, 2002
    Modi told TNN that the Gaurav Yatra was essentially to create a real picture of the state of affairs as many still believe that Gujarat is still burning and not safe. However, he admitted these kind of exercises become part of election campaign as well.

  • 'Wooing tribals won't be easy for Modi'
    Amarendra Jha, Times News Network, September 21, 2002
    Breaking the ice in the tribal region for political gains by Modi would certainly be an uphill task as in the last decade, their demand for more autonomy have gained ground.

  • Bumpy road ahead for rath
    By Our Correspondent, The Telgraph, September 20, 2002
    Ahmedabad, Sept. 19: When Narendra Modi's Gaurav Yatra rolls again on Saturday through south Gujarat, it will have to barrel through a wave of protest and negotiate a slippery stretch of scam-induced muck.

  • Gujarat split on gaurav in yatra
    By Radhika Ramaseshan, The Telgraph, September 20, 2002
    Ahmedabad, Sept. 19: Narendra Modi's Gaurav Yatra — which has Gujarati asmita (self-pride) and swabhimaan (self-respect) as its thematic leitmotifs — meant different things for different people.

    [...]

    Although a representative of the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry claimed that none of the 104 MoUs signed by overseas companies before the violence was affected, industry sources said two major collaborators had pulled out.

  • No room for BJP Muslims in yatra
    Vitusha Oberoi, Tuesday September 17, 2002
    New Delhi: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi is not keen to have the Muslim leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) aboard his bandwagon.

  • At home, Narendra Modi rewinds old tapes
    On last day of phase II, he plays to the crowd in BJP bastion
    Janyala Sreenivas, The Indian Express, September 18, 2002

    Narendra Modi Bhanvad, Dwarka, September 17: On the concluding day of the Gaurav Yatra’s second phase, Narendra Modi made his pride more than apparent. Using the religious card to whip up sentiments, Modi went on the offensive in Rajkot and Jamnagar districts.

  • NHRC urged to probe 'misuse' of children for 'yatra'
    By J. Venkatesan , NEW DELHI , SEPT. 14, 2002
    The National Human Rights Commission has been moved to order an inquiry into the alleged misuse of the State machinery in forcibly closing schools and mobilising children to line them along the route of the `gaurav rath yatra' of the Gujarat Chief Minister, Narendra Modi.

  • Narendra Modi's long haul
    Dionne Bunsha in Ahmedabad, Frontline online, Vol. 19 :: No. 19 September 14 - 27, 2002
    OLD-FASHIONED caste seems to be making a comeback against new-fangled Hindutva on Gujarat's retrograde political stage. By appealing along caste lines, newly-appointed Congress(I) president Shankarsinh Vaghela has called the wily Bharatiya Janata Party Chief Minister Narendra Modi's bluff. Even in communally polarised Gujarat, caste ties seem to be stronger than communal biases, judging by the response to Vaghela's rallies in the past month.

  • VHP plans yatra in Gujarat
    Times News Network, September 14, 2002
    AHMEDABAD: As if Narendra Modi’s gaurav yatra was not enough, the VHP has also chalked out a plan to organise a yatra of sadhus to propagate Hindtuva and educate the society against sinister designs of ‘‘anti-Hindu fundamentalists, who were out to create disturbances all over the country’’.

  • Junagadh residents boycott yatra
    Times News Network, September 13, 2002
    RAJKOT: The people of Junagadh have issued a veiled threat to the BJP, and have said that unless their city is accorded a corporation status by September 15, they would not allow the Gaurav yatra to enter the city.

  • Gaurav Yatra to pass through Godhra
    Times News Network, September 11, 2002
    AHMEDABAD: BJP's Gaurav Yatra, which was launched from Phagvel last week, would also pass through Godhra, said yatra convenor Jayantibhai Barot here on Wednesday.

  • Why not a ‘lajja yatra’?
    Chitra Padmanabhan, The Hindustan Times, September 12, 2002
    Despite a pall of fear, a huge turnout of victims of the two-month long carnage finally spoke out at the ‘Sah Nirman Rally’, walking a five-kilometre stretch they had not dared step upon these last few months. Organised by the Society for Promotion of Rational Thinking (SPRAT) with groups, including the Citizens’ Initiative, Swaraj, Darshan, Prawah, Democratic Youth Federation of India, Action Aid, Abhikram, MKSS, Janpath, and Gujarat Sarvajanik Relief Committee, and supported by 120 organisations across Gujarat, the rally in Ahmedabad was like an underground stream that gushes to the surface with an awesome purity of purpose.....

    There cannot be a better beginning to a long fight against injustice than a ‘Lajja Yatra’ transforming into a Gaurav Yatra honouring the humanist spirit of individuals like Deepak.

  • Modi rath: Gujarat BJP on a roll again
    Express News Service, Ahmedabad, September 10, 2002
    Whether it helps Narendra Modi win the elections or not, the Gujarat BJP says the first leg of its Gaurav Yatra has scored at least one achievement: Lifted the morale of its cadre after it hit a low over uncertainty about poll dates.

    After the first phase ended at Chanasma in Patan district on Monday night, yatra convenor Jayantibhai Barot said: ‘‘The Gaurav Yatra has pepped up all party workers. Their enthusiasm could be seen at all places from where the Yatra passed.’’

  • Gujarat prepares for Hindu march
    BBC News Online, September 8, 2002
    Tight security arrangements are in place in the western Indian state of Gujarat ahead of a march later on Sunday by the state's governing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

  • Gujarat won't accept Congress rule: Modi
    Agencies, Phagvel (Kheda), September 08
    Bharatiya Janata Party on Sunday virtually kick-started its election campaign for Assembly elections in Gujarat with a Gaurav Yatra, a rally and powerful speeches of Narendra Modi and party General Secretary Rajnath Singh here eyeing the crucial vote bank of kshatriyas.

  • Gaurav Yatra to be flagged off today
    Times News Network, September 07, 2002
    AHMEDABAD: Though the Gujarat government claims there is no possibility of confrontation, former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Rajnath Singh will be flagging off the controversial Gujarat Gaurav Yatra on Sunday at Phagvel village, about 100 km south-west of here, amidst unprecedented security.

  • BJP's Gaurav Yatra from Sunday
    Press Trust of India, New Delhi, September 06, 2002
    The BJP would kick off its election campaign in Gujarat with the flagging off of Chief minster Narendra Modi's controversial Gaurav Yatra on Sunday by party general secretary Rajnath Singh from Phagvel in Kheda district.

  • Modi puts off yatra, Vaghela signals halt
    By Our correspondent, September 4, 2002
    Ahmedabad, Sept. 3: Narendra Modi today postponed his Gaurav Yatra by a day yet again, even as Congress chief Shankersinh Vaghela gave a call to stop the caretaker chief minister from entering Phagvel, from where the yatra is now scheduled to be launched on September 8.

  • Gaurav Yatra to be launched on Sunday
    Times News Network, September 03, 2002
    AHMEDABAD: The BJP's Gujarat Gaurav Yatra will be now launched from Phagvel on Sunday instead of Saturday as announced earlier.

  • Gujarat Gaurav Yatra postponed till September 7
    Press Trust of India, September 01, 2002
    The BJP on Sunday put off its much-hyped Gujarat Gaurav Yatra from September 3 to September 7 to avoid possible violence at the launching point Phagavel village where Congress had threatened to hold a parallel function on the same day.

  • Prohibitory orders in several towns of Kheda district in Gujarat
    Press Trust of India, Ahmedabad, August 30, 2002
    AHMEDABAD: They wish they could share Gujarat's 'gaurav'. But not-so-old memories keep rushing back to haunt them. The riots spared them but the aftermath didn't.

  • Rajnath to flag off Modi's Gaurav Yatra
    Times News Network, August 28, 2002
    NEW DELHI: All is not well with the Gujarat unit of the BJP, with campaign committee chairman Keshubhai Patel deciding to fly off to Antwerp to attend a wedding ceremony rather than flag off the all-important Gaurav Yatra of chief minister Narendra Modi.

    Now BJP general secretary Rajnath Singh will perform the task on September 3 when the first of the yatras will be launched.

  • Modi determined to take out 'Gujarat Gaurav Yatra'
    Press Trust of India, August 27, 2002
    Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has reiterated his determination to take out the "Gujarat Gaurav Yatra" on September 3 to tell the world the "gaurav gatha" of five crore people of the state.

  • Gujarat Bachao Yatra to hit road
    PTI, Ahmedabad, August 26, 2002
    Gujarat is all set to witness a 'rath race' in September, with the Bharat Bachao Morcha also readying to take out a rath yatra throughout the state beginning next month.

    Chief Minister Narendra Modi would on September three lead BJP's Gujarat Gaurav Yatra from Phagvel in Kheda district.

    Bharat Bachao Morcha, an organisation floated by SC/ST Government Employees Federation chairman Udit Raj, is launching its "Gujarat Bachao Yatra" on September 1 from Ahmedabad, its convenor Bhante Sanghpriya told in Ahmedabad on Monday.

  • Jain muni directs Modi to halt yatra
    Express News Service, Gandhinagar, August 25, 2002
    The 83-year-old Acharya Mahapragya, head of the Terapanthi sect of Jains whom Sonia Gandhi came calling on today, had a word of advice for Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi recently.

  • Modi revives 'Rath Yatra'
    By Manas Dasgupta, The Hindu, AHMEDABAD AUG. 20, 2002
    The Gujarat BJP unit has decided to revive the controversial ``Gaurav rath yatra'' of the Chief Minister, Narendra Modi, from September 3. Announcing the programme to `kick off' the party's Assembly election campaign, the State party president, Rajendrasinh Rana, said the revised programme had been approved by the high command and there was no question of its being cancelled again.

  • BJP to launch Gaurav Yatra in Gujarat
    Press Trust of India, New Delhi, August 20, 2002
    The BJP central leadership firmly backed the Gaurav Yatra to be taken out in Gujarat by the party's state unit and sought to dispel apprehensions that it would affect the communal situation in the state.

  • Gujarat yatra plan revived under EC nose
    Rathin Das and Hemendra Singh Bartwal, Ahmedabad/New Delhi, The Hindustan Times, August 08, 2002
    Hours before the full Election Commission (EC) arrived in Gujarat on a rare situation appraisal mission, the BJP announced a revival of Chief Minister Narendra Modi's controversial rath yatra plan.

  • Not a matter of pride
    The BJP high command should have nixed Modi’s yatra earlier
    Editorial, The Indian Express, July 4, 2002

    No matter what the BJP’s freshly-anointed spokesperson claims, the Gujarat Gaurav Rathyatra was not about a political party’s legitimate right to launch a political campaign. Nor is the decision to call a last-minute halt in the wake of the NHRC’s criticism indicative of the Commission exceeding its jurisdiction, as miffed BJP men in Gujarat have been heard complaining. The fact is Narendra Modi’s road show was a hideous, even dangerous, idea.


  • Restoring Gujarat's image
    Editorial, The Hindu, July 4, 2002
    THE DECISION OF the Gujarat Chief Minister, Narendra Modi, and the State's BJP unit to put off the series of `rath yatras' scheduled from today is indeed a matter of great relief to the extent that an imminent threat to the fragile peace obtaining there has receded — the programme has only been "deferred", not called off.


  • Gujarat Test For PM and Deputy
    From Radhika Ramaseshan, The Telegraph, July 4th, 2002
    New Delhi, July 3: Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee is not in favour of holding early polls in Gujarat, sources close to him said.

    Vajpayee’s advice to Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi to defer his Gaurav Rath Yatra was a subtle message that no pre-election campaign, which is what the yatra was packaged as, should start until rehabilitation of the victims of violence was completed.


  • Yatra not on hold for good: Jaitley
    Express News Service, July 4, 2002
    New Delhi, July 3: The BJP today defended Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s now shelved ‘‘Gujarat Gaurav Yatra’’ as ‘‘a normal political campaign’’ without any religious overtones.


  • BJP guns for NHRC after yatras called off
    Times News Network, July 04, 2002
    NEW DELHI: A day after Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi was forced to call off the controversial Gaurav Yatra, the BJP made no secret of its unhappiness with the NHRC's reservations about it, saying the yatra was a political activity and "political freedom is part of human rights".


  • Modi Govt. puts off `gaurav rath yatra'
    By Manas Dasgupta, The Hindu, July 3, 2002
    AHMEDABAD JULY 2. Forced by the party's central leadership, the Gujarat unit of the BJP has cancelled "for the time being" the "gaurav rath yatra" of the Chief Minister, Narendra Modi, scheduled to begin from the holy town of Ambaji on Thursday.


  • PM rains on Modi’s pride parade
    State officials say riot victims scared, PM asks Advani to call Modi
    Arati R Jerath & Darshan Desai , The Indian Express, July 03, 2002,

    New Delhi, Gandhinagar, July 2: The Gujarat Gaurav Rathyatra of Chief Minister Narendra Modi has been halted in its tracks 48 hours before it sets off packaging Modi as the state’s Sardar Patel. New Delhi, Gandhinagar, July 2: The Gujarat Gaurav Rathyatra of Chief Minister Narendra Modi has been halted in its tracks 48 hours before it sets off packaging Modi as the state’s Sardar Patel.


  • NHRC warns Modi Govt.
    By Our Special Correspondent, The Hindu, July 2, 2002
    NEW DELHI JULY 1. In light of the BJP-organised Gaurav yatras and the annual Jagannath yatra to be held in Gujarat from July 4, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued a strongly worded statement calling on the Gujarat Government to act in such a manner that "innocent residents of the State are not exposed, yet again, to violence or the threat to violence.''


  • NHRC airs concern over Gujarat yatras
    Times News Network, July 01, 2002
    NEW DELHI: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Monday expressed serious concern at the proposed Gaurav Yatras and Jagannanth Rath Yatras in Gujarat. The commission felt it could re-ignite communal violence in the riot-hit state.


  • Atop Rath, Modi will play King of Hearts
    Darshan Desai, The Indian Express, June 29, 2002
    Gandhinagar, June 28: Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s Gujarat Gaurav Yatra, which will see him atop a high-tech chariot (Rath), gets underway from July 4. The ruling BJP will equate him with Sardar Patel, and he himself will drum up ‘‘Gujaratiism’’, damning the handful of people ‘‘out to portray the Gujarati worldwide as a violent, communal, and insensitive person.’’


  • Original Plan for Gujarat Gaurav Yatras

    Originally planned to start on July 4th, 2002 and last till all the 25 districts are covered

    • To be flagged off by Home Minister Advani from the temple town of Ambaji, the yatra’s theme seeps from Bal Thackeray’s ‘Amchi Mumbai’ campaign.

    • Chief Minister Narendra Modi will see him atop a high-tech chariot (Rath).

    • Will move across the length and breadth of the state.

    • Purposes of Yatra:
      • To tell the people how the Gujarati has been portrayed as communal though most of the state were “peaceful” during the recent violence.

      • To prove the BJP’s secular credentials (example to quote: 7,000 Haj pilgrims were given a peaceful entry in the state

    [Source: Extracted from Atop Rath, Modi will play King of Hearts    Darshan Desai, The Indian Express, June 29, 2002 ]