Congress leader Rahul Gandhi today shared a video of him taking martial arts sessions, which he said were held during his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra earlier this year. Taking to his official X account, he also said that a "Bharat Dojo Yatra" is coming soon. Dojo broadly refers to a training hall or school for martial arts.
"During the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, as we journeyed across thousands of kilometers, we had a daily routine of practicing jiu-jitsu every evening at our campsite. What began as a simple way to stay fit quickly evolved into a community activity, bringing together fellow yatris and young martial arts students from the towns where we stayed," Mr Gandhi wrote on X.
He undertook the over two-month-long Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra from Manipur to Mumbai. It came over a year after his Bharat Jodo Yatra, which was held between September 2022 and January 2023.
In the eight-minute video, he can seen teaching the children various techniques. He can also be heard saying that he is a black belt in Aikido and a blue belt in Jiu-Jitsu.
During the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, as we journeyed across thousands of kilometers, we had a daily routine of practicing jiu-jitsu every evening at our campsite. What began as a simple way to stay fit quickly evolved into a community activity, bringing together fellow yatris and… pic.twitter.com/Zvmw78ShDX
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 29, 2024
"Our goal was to introduce these young minds to the beauty of the 'Gentle Art'-a harmonious blend of meditation, jiu-jitsu, Aikido, and non-violent conflict resolution techniques. We aimed to instill in them the value of transforming violence into gentleness, giving them the tools to build a more compassionate and safer society," he said.
On this National Sports Day, I want to share our experience with all of you, hoping to inspire some of you to take up the practice of the ‘Gentle Art’, Mr Gandhi said.
During the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, as we journeyed across thousands of kilometers, we had a daily routine of practicing jiu-jitsu every evening at our campsite. What began as a simple way to stay fit quickly evolved into a community activity, bringing together fellow yatris and… pic.twitter.com/Zvmw78ShDX
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 29, 2024
"PS: Bharat Dojo Yatra is coming soon," he added.