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CHANDIGARH — Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday made an impromptu stop at Madina village in Haryana's Sonipat district, interacted with people and spent time with farmers working agricultural lands.
He also took part in paddy sowing, drove a tractor and ate food brought by women labourers working in the fields, party leaders from the state said.
[bsa_pro_ad_space id=1]Gandhi reached the village amid a light drizzle at 6.40 am and spent nearly two-and-a-half hours there, they said.
"It was an impromptu visit ... He interacted with the villagers and the farmers working in the fields. Rahulji also took part in paddy sowing and drove a tractor," Jagbeer Singh Malik, the Congress' MLA from Gohana in Sonipat, told PTI over phone.
"We did not have prior information about his visit. But we have in the past also seen him making such unscheduled stops to know first-hand the concerns and problems of a cross-section of society -- be it truck drivers, women, students and other sections," the legislator said.
Malik reached the spot with party MLA Induraj Narwal. Gandhi made the stop on his way to Himachal Pradesh from Delhi.
In pictures tweeted by the Congress' official handle, Gandhi was seen in his familiar white t-shirt and trousers. Rolling up his trousers and with his shoes in hand, Gandhi walked on the muddy tracks and the irrigated fields with the villagers.
Narwal, the MLA from Baroda in Sonipat, said Gandhi spent time with the villagers and the farmers and listened to their concerns.
He also ate the food brought by the women labourers, another party leader said.
Many villagers told reporters that they were taken by surprise when Gandhi's cavalcade stopped near the fields.
Senior Congress leaders Randeep Singh Surjewala and Deepender Singh Hooda also posted pictures of Gandhi's visit to the village on their respective Twitter handles.
Surjewala said Gandhi enquired about the well-being of the farmers, discussed agriculture and listened to their concerns.
In a tweet in Hindi, Hooda said, "Rahulji stayed with the farmers and labourers in the field for two hours. He also drove a tractor, sowed paddy, and ate with the farmers."
On Friday, Gujarat High Court dismissed Gandhi's plea seeking a stay on his conviction in a criminal defamation case over his "Modi surname" remark.
Gandhi on May 23 travelled in a truck from Delhi to Chandigarh to listen to the problems faced by the truck drivers.
He undertook the journey during the night and in visuals and videos, the former Congress chief, donning his trademark white t-shirt, was seen sitting inside a truck, travelling with a driver and speaking to drivers at a dhaba.