Indo-Asian News Service
Raipur: Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Friday spent two hours with a tribal family and had lunch with them during a visit to one of the poorest tribal pockets in Chhattisgarh's Maoist-hit Sarguja district.
Tribe's people crowded both sides of the road to have a glimpse of the 37-year-old Gandhi scion as he travelled through the forested stretches from Ambikapur town, 350 km north of capital Raipur.
En route his 100 km-road show, the young Congress parliamentarian surprised a tribal family in Lenga village by turning up at their hut and requesting for lunch.
The family head, Ramlal Gond, almost broke down at having a member of the Indira Gandhi family lunch with them. Within 10 minutes, several villagers assembled at Ramlal's house where the leader sipped black tea and then ate rice and chutney for lunch cooked by the villagers during his two-hour stay in the village.
Congress sources said Rahul Gandhi too got emotional when the villagers informed him that "their heart still throbs for the Indira Gandhi family" as "she too had visited the area and done a lot for the tribal masses".
After a successful road show, Rahul Gandhi reached the state's southern Bastar district where he is scheduled to spend the night at the district headquarters Jagdalpur town.
He will visit Jamawada village in Bastar on Saturday morning to 'closely experience tribal culture and their lifestyle', said a Congress leader. He will meet artisans, who are known for their craftsmanship, and have a detailed interaction with tribal students in Kanker district.