New Delhi: A man ran towards Rahul Gandhi and tried to hug him during the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Punjab on Tuesday (January 17, 2023), following which the Congress leader said there was no security breach and “he was a little over-enthusiastic”. .
In a video, a man wearing a jacket can be seen running towards the Congress MP and trying to hug him. However, he was stopped and pushed by Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh Raja Waring and other party workers along with Gandhi.
#watch , Punjab: A man tries to hug Congress MP Rahul Gandhi during Bharat Jodo Yatra in Hoshiarpur, later pulled away by workers.
(Source: Congress Social Media) pic.twitter.com/aybyojZ1ps– ANI (@ANI) January 17, 2023
Rahul said, “I don’t know why you are calling it (security) lapse. I think the security personnel checked the man, he was a bit overzealous.”
“There’s a lot of excitement in travel, a lot of people get over-excited and there was a case where he got charged a little extra, so that’s not a problem. It’s happened many times before. I would call it a security lapse.” Won’t say.”
Live: Press Briefing by Shri @RahulGandhi in Hoshiarpur, Punjab. #BharatJodoYatra https://t.co/THyi4iJHVX— Congress (@INCIndia) January 17, 2023
Inspector General of Police GS Dhillon also said that Gandhi himself had called the man and there was no security lapse.
“I have verified it. Rahul ji himself called him (the person) and then he tried to hug him (the Congress MP). After that (Amarinder Singh) Raja Waring pushed him away as the yatra moves at a certain pace. And it affects.” Its movement,” Dhillon said, adding that there was nothing to suggest it was a security breach.
Waring also said that there had been no breach of security and that the man was an ardent supporter of Gandhi.
Meanwhile, the Bharat Jodo Yatra, which started from Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu on September 7, is scheduled to enter Himachal Pradesh from Punjab on Wednesday.
LIVE: Flag handover ceremony at Ghatota, Himachal Pradesh & Padyatra resumes. #BharatJodoYatra https://t.co/HEc6ubwUuz— Congress (@INCIndia) January 18, 2023
It will culminate in Srinagar by January 30, with Gandhi hoisting the national flag in the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir.
It has so far covered Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.
Earlier on Saturday, the march was postponed for 24 hours in view of the death of Congress MP Santokh Singh Choudhary. The MP had a cardiac arrest during the journey.