Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi joined a long march of his youth brigade in Kerala yesterday, giving a tough time to his security guards.
The Gandhi scion joined the ‘Yuva Kerala Yatra’ campaign of the Youth Congress at Nooranad in Alappuzha district, 94km away from the state capital, and walked some 2km with them, leaving the security apparatus in disarray.
The workers virtually mobbed the “youth icon” as he joined them and the party leaders found it difficult to carry on the march. Gandhi later shifted to a vehicle and travelled along the march, waving at hundreds of people waiting for him at the roadside.
At least 100 people were hurt in the melee as workers jostled to touch him. Junior Labour Minister Kodikkunnil Suresh said he was seeking treatment for injuries.
No other senior leader of the party accompanied Gandhi. He was seen walking with his hand on the shoulders of P C Vishnunath, a young legislator, and the crowd swelled as news of his long walk on the busy road spread.
Traffic was not stopped and many commuters were seen capturing the surprise scene on their mobile phone cameras.
Gandhi arrived at the Kochi airport and stopped at a health centre in a village on the way to Alappuzha where he spent about half-an-hour and chatted with Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA).
A polio vaccine distribution was in progress at the health centre and he immediately joined the campaign by administering polio drops to a baby. He also lavished praise on the universal public healthcare system of the state which is “one of the best in the country.”
The Congress and the Special Protection Group (SPG) responsible for his security had discussed the security plans for Gandhi on Sunday. The SPG had deployed 30 commandos for his protection.
He was received at the airport by Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi and Ramesh Chennithala, the state’s home minister and party chief, and other leaders who all accompanied him to the health centre.
The main themes of the Yatra, kicked off by Chennithala a month back from the state’s northern tip of Kasaragod, are secularism and the creation of a non-violent society, to counter the campaign of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, accused of presiding over the 2002 communal carnage.
With the general elections round the corner, Gandhi is on a mission to reinvigorate the party machinery across the country. On Saturday, he conducted an idea session ‘Your Voice, Our Pledge’ in Bangalore, where some 225 students and young achievers from across 29 states participated.
The Congress leader, whose popularity rating has dropped sharply compared to Modi and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, spent more than two hours with youngsters who spoke about various issues.
Gandhi also spoke on phone to Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, who was admitted to the Medical College Hospital in Kottayam, and inquired after his health before flying back to New Delhi.
