BHOPAL: Amid huge pomp and show, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Monday began the poll campaign for his party in Madhya Pradesh. He began the campaign by taking the blessings from 11 Hindu priests in the Lalgathi area and holding a roadshow in the poll-bound state.
Rahul, arrived in Bhopal on Monday was accorded a grand welcome at the airport by Madhya Pradesh Congress president Kamal Nath and senior party leader and Guna MP Jyotiraditya Scindia among others. Banners and posters describing Rahuk as a 'Shiv bhakt' were put up across the city. Chants of 'Rahul Gandhi Zindabad' were also heard on his arrival.
Before beginning his 15-km-long roadshow, Rahul took the blessings of the priests and performed a 'puja'. Thousands of Congressmen thronged the roadsides and jostled to catch a glimpse of their party chief, who set out in the bus along with senior party leaders.
Congress President @RahulGandhi is greeted by a throng of supporters during the #CongressSankalpYatra in Bhopal. pic.twitter.com/CjNyQFZhSw
— Congress (@INCIndia) September 17, 2018
He even stopped to drink tea and eat somasas also giving his followers a chance to click selfies with him.
___, _____ __ ______ _#CongressSankalpYatra pic.twitter.com/cewTNqnAFZ
— Congress (@INCIndia) September 17, 2018
There is heavy security deployment across the 15-km stretch where the roadshow is being held. Besides the regular police force, an additional 1,500 policemen are manning the streets of Bhopal.
Rahul's roadshow, in which he rode in an open vehicle, concluded at the Bharat Heavy Electrical Ltd's Dussehra Maidan where he will interact with party cadres in the evening. A T-shape ramp has been constructed near the stage from where Rahul will take questions from party workers during his interaction with them.
The Congress is hoping to gain power in the state which has been ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the last 15 years. Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh are due this year along with Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Mizoram.
