By Shishir Prashant 
PrashantNews
Former Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat on Monday defied the Congress high command’s directive to call off his parallel programme and went ahead with a yatra in Jaspur in Udham Singh Nagar district, exposing fresh fissures in the party ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections.
Rawat was joined by former state party president and Chairman of Congress campaign committee Pritam Singh, former Speaker Govind Singh Kunjwal and several other party leaders during the programme, sending a clear signal that his initiative has considerable support within the state unit.
During the yatra, the former chief minister said that his objective is to work for the ouster of BJP governments in both Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh.
Rawat’s decision came despite a letter from Congress general secretary and Uttarakhand in-charge Kumari Selja asking him to stop what she described as a “parallel yatra”. Selja also rebuked Rawat over some of his recent statements and stressed that the party needed to present a united front in the run-up to the Assembly elections. “You will appreciate that any such parallel programme at this juncture will not be in the interest of the party,” Selja said in her letter.
Rawat, however, made it clear that he had no intention of backing off. In a post on Facebook, he said that people who had stood by him during difficult times were joining his “Dhanyawad Jansanwad Yatra” despite leaving their work behind.
Referring to his recent illness, Rawat said doctors at Medanta had advised him to take another month and a half of rest. But, he said, the “challenge” posed by the Enforcement Directorate and the BJP had prompted him to return to public life despite his health condition.
His defiant message at the end of the post — “कारवां चल पड़ा है, कारवां चलता रहेगा—जनता का विश्वास, हर कदम बढ़ता रहेगा” (The caravan has begun its journey and will continue to move forward; with the people’s trust, every step will take us ahead) — made clear that he intends to continue the yatra despite the high command’s objections.
The developments have once again brought to the fore the factional differences within the Uttarakhand Congress, with the party facing the challenge of projecting a united leadership ahead of the 2027 Assembly polls.
Rawat’s open defiance of the central leadership is likely to intensify the debate within the party over leadership, strategy and coordination as it prepares to take on the BJP in the state. Referring to the issue, state Congress President Ganesh Godiyal said the party high command would take a decision on the issue.