Rahul Gandhi skips northeast poll campaign, seen skiing in J-K’s Gulmarg

Gulmarg (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], February 16 (ANI): After having skipped poll campaigning in Northeast, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was seen skiing in Jammu and Kashmir's Gulmarg on Wednesday, just a day ahead of the Tripura Assembly polls.
In pictures and videos shared on social media, Rahul Gandhi was seen skiing like a pro in north Kashmir's Gulmarg.
Rahul Gandhi returned to Jammu and Kashmir after the conclusion of the first part of the Budget Session of the Parliament.
The Congress leader is on his personal visit to J-K and he was seen surrounded by his security as the tourists on the spot thronged to meet the Congress leader.
Gandhi was in Jammu and Kashmir last month for the last leg of the Bharat Jodo Yatra which concluded in Srinagar with flag hoisting at the Congress office. He had unfurled the Tricolour at Lal Chowk marking the conclusion of the Yatra.
His visit comes amid the 60-member Tripura Assembly polls, the voting for which will take place today.
Notably, Congress's top leaders including Rahul Gandhi were missing from campaigning in Tripura including the two other states -- Meghalaya and Nagaland, which would go to polls on February 27.
"Rahul Gandhi seen readying for skiing in Gulmarg, Kashmir," Jammu and Kashmir Congress Sevadal tweeted on Wednesday.
Reacting to his visit, the tourists said that they wanted to take a close look at the Congress leader and take selfie with him.
"I met Rahul Gandhi here. He had come here for skiing. I met him at a close distance, but due to security I had to retreat. He also came to enjoy, and so did we," a tourist from Nashik said while speaking to ANI.
Another tourist who also hailed from Nashik said, "We came to know that Rahul Gandhi is coming here, so we were waiting for three hours. We had only seen him in pictures. We wanted a selfie with him but there was much crowd. We were not allowed due to security that we will get a chance to get a selfie later on."
Earlier in January, Rahul Gandhi had dared Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP leaders to walk from Jammu to Srinagar's Lal Chowk if the situation is so good in the Union Territory.
"PM Modi, Amit Shah, and RSS have not seen violence. We walked here for four days. I can guarantee you that no BJP leader can walk like this here, not because the people of J-K will not let them walk, but because they are scared," Rahul Gandhi had said.
However, the BJP leaders retorted to Gandhi's remark while also crediting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the situation in J-K which enabled the Congress leader to visit Kashmir and unfurl the national flag.
"How did Rahul Gandhi peacefully unfurl the Tricolour at Srinagar's Lal Chowk today? It happened because Modi Ji abrogated Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. After Article 370, Jammu and Kashmir received a high number of tourists. During the Congress government, there was terrorism and fear in Kashmir," Ravi Shankar Prasad had said.
Earlier, addressing the concluding ceremony of the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Srinagar, Rahul Gandhi had referred to pain from an old knee injury, which he had got while playing football in college and said it re-emerged while walking during Bharat Jodo Yatra.
He added that he started finding the Yatra difficult as the pain increased, but everything changed and the pain vanished when he got a letter from a little girl, who said that she knew that he was walking for her future.
Gandhi said 'Kashmiriyat' was his home. "When I was walking to Kashmir, I thought this is the same route through which, years ago, my relatives came from Kashmir to Allahabad. I felt that I was returning to my home. Since I was a child, I have lived in government accommodations, I do not have a house. I have never accepted these structures as my home. Wherever I live, it is a building, not a home. For me, a home is a thinking, it is a way of life." (ANI)