Bharat Jodo Yatra — the Congress’ long march aimed at “uniting” the nation “amid growing divisive politics and practices” started from Kanyakumari on Thursday, with top leader Rahul Gandhi leading from the front.

The Yatra, which also aims at reviving the party’s fortune by improving people contact, started from Vivekananda Polytechnic in Kanyakumari, and reached Suchindrum, around 13 km from the city around 10 am.

After a halt here, Rahul Gandhi will interact with women activists, and interact with Dalit activists and representatives of the civil society among other things.

On the way to Suchindrum, Rahul Gandhi also met T Shanmugham, the father of late NEET aspirant S. Anitha and her brother Maniratnam.

Anitha was a 17-year old Scheduled Caste student who had scored 1,176 out of 1,200 marks in her Class 12 State Board examinations but was unable to join the MBBS course due to poor scores in NEET, finally committing suicide last year.

The Yatra will start again after the meetings.

The Congress has said they plan to cover 20-22 km per day.

The over 3,500 km foot march will cross 12 states and two union territories. It will pass through Kanyakumari, Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Nilambur, Mysuru, Bellary, Raichur, Vikarabad, Nanded, Jalgaon Jamod, Indore, Kota, Dausa, Alwar, Bulandshahar, Delhi, Ambala, Pathankot, Jammu, Srinagar among the major cities on route.