Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh):
Mahua harvesters were caught by surprise as they spotted Congress' Rahul Gandhi near their fields in Madhya Pradesh's Umaria on Tuesday morning.
Gandhi approached the group of women harvesting Mahua near the airstrip. The women were totally perplexed, as they couldn't believe their eyes, when he introduced himself, stating, "I am Rahul Gandhi."
The women were shocked by the unexpected encounter with such a prominent figure.
Notably, Gandhi was in Shahdol on Monday to campaign for candidate Fundelal Marko; however, his chopper ran out of fuel, forcing him to spend a night there.
In his usual style, Rahul Gandhi engaged in conversation with the women gathering Mahua, inquiring about the harvesting of the fruit and their earnings from it. He also picked up fallen Mahua and sampled it by tasting the fruit.
After spending around 10 to 15 minutes interacting with the women beneath the Mahua tree, Rahul Gandhi then proceeded to the Umaria airstrip.
At the Umaria airstrip, Rahul Gandhi was greeted by a group of Congress leaders, led by former MLA and Congress District President Ajay Singh.
Among the warm welcome, media personnel grasped the opportunity to inquire about BJP leaders labelling the Congress manifesto as similar to that of the Muslim League.
However, Rahul Gandhi chose not to respond to such questions and proceeded forward without addressing the question. His focus remained on the purpose of his visit, steering clear of distractions along the way.