Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has claimed that "urban naxal" groups were involved in the Bharat Jodo Yatra led by Rahul Gandhi. He said these groups held a meeting in Nepal to plan a conspiracy aimed at destabilising BJP-led governments. Fadnavis made this statement in the Assembly, mentioning that the meeting took place in Kathmandu on November 15, just before the Maharashtra Assembly elections, with the intention of causing unrest in Mumbai, the financial capital.

According to Fadnavis, there was "evidence of foreign interference" and the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has begun an investigation into the use of "terror funds" in the elections. "On November 15, a meeting was held in Kathmandu that was attended by some organisations which took part in the (Rahul Gandhi-led) Bharat Jodo Yatra and issues like opposing EVMs and introduction of ballot papers in Maharashtra and BJP-ruled states were discussed," Fadnavis told the Assembly. Before the Lok Sabha election, Rahul Gandhi organised a cross-country foot march to rally support for the Congress.

During the Congress-NCP government, Fadnavis further asserted that former Home Minister RR Patil had designated 40 of the 180 organisations that participated in Rahul Gandhi's yatra as frontal organisations. "On February 18, 2014, during the Manmohan Singh government, the Centre mentioned 72 frontal organisations in the Lok Sabha, out of which 7 were part of the Bharat Jodo Yatra," he further said. According to the Chief Minister these groups supported the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) during the Maharashtra Assembly elections. 

"There was evidence of foreign interference in Indian elections. The opposition is allowing their shoulders to be used by someone else," Fadnavis stated. The government's presentation of the Maharashtra Special Public Security Act, 2024, to the Assembly to address "urban Naxalism" coincided with Fadnavis's assertion. The "increasing presence of Naxalism in urban centres" is addressed in the act.