Raje to begin final leg of yatra today

: Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje is set to begin the final leg of her ambitious Gaurav Yatra from Pali district on Wednesday, days after miscreants threw stones, showed black flags and interrupted her public meetings in Jodhpur district.

The stone-pelting incident took place on Saturday in Pipad town, a stronghold of the opposition Congress party, during the second phase of the yatra, when Raje was addressing a group of people. The yatra began on August 4 from Udaipur division.

Raje and her party, the BJP, have accused the Congress of staging protests to disrupt her campaign. She has blamed Congress national general secretary Ashok Gehlot for stone-pelting.

Gehlot and other Congress leaders have denied the accusation, saying their party does not adopt such tactics for political gains. Heavy security arrangements have been put in place following the incidents. Police and Pali administration are taking precaution to ensure the yatra proceeds smoothly.

A senior police official said they have scanned intelligence inputs and deployed policemen in adequate numbers at all venues of meetings. “We have done a check-list of all spots of the Gaurav Yatra in the district, which include both felicitation programmes and public meetings, where the chief minister will address the gathering. Adequate arrangements of policemen has been made at all these spots,” the police official said.

JODHPUR