Rahul Gandhi this morning flew down to a Rajasthan town from where he headed by road to Mandsaur in neighbouring Madhya Pradesh, the epicenter of violent farmer protests that escalated over the death of 5 in police firing . Stopped by the police en route, the Congress vice president swapped his car for a bike and finally set out on foot.
After landing in Udaipur, Mr Gandhi drove in a convoy towards Mandsaur, around 180 km away.
When his convoy was stopped near Rajasthan-Madhya Pradesh border, the Congress leader was seen jumping onto a bike, surrounded by a crowd of security personnel, Congress workers, journalists and policemen. Sachin Pilot, the Rajasthan Congress chief, drove another bike.
Around 3 km from the border, the Congress leaders were stopped again. That is where Mr Gandhi got off the bike and started a brisk walk, ring-fenced by the elite Special Protection Group, with Congress workers shouting slogans. He was seen in visuals arguing heatedly with policemen.
The 46-year-old tweeted about his dramatic journey, targeting the BJP governments of both states.Yesterday, Mr Gandhi announced on Twitter that he would travel to the state that has continuously voted the BJP since 2003.
Mr Gandhi, the party’s number two leader, is set to take over as Congress president by October.
Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar has accused the Congress vice president of going to violence-hit Mandsaur because “he is publicity hungry”.
