The Congress party has claimed that Rahul Gandhi was wearing a raincoat during his Bharat Jodo Yatra in Jammu and Kashmir, after videos and photographs of the Congress MP wearing a ‘jacket’ over his familiar T-shirt viral earlier today. The matter became a subject of discussion because earlier Rahul Gandhi had said that he does not wear winter-wear because he does not fear coldness.
Earlier in the day, Rahul Gandhi was seen wearing a ‘jacket’ in the Jammu and Kashmir leg of the Bharat Jod Yatra on Friday, 20th January 2023. Earlier, Congress supporters had hailed the Waynad MP for being cold-resistant when he was seen wearing a T-shirt in the chilling weather of Delhi during his Bharat Jodo Yatra. Congress leader Salman Khurshid went on to call him a superhuman for wearing just a T-shirt in the cold weather.
The Jammu and Kashmir leg of the Bharat Jodo Yatra started on Friday from Hatli Morh in the Kathua district of the border state. While wearing only a T-shirt in the cold weather of northern India, Rahul Gandhi had said that he decided to wear only T-shirts during the Congress’ ongoing Bharat Jodo after meeting poor girls shivering in torn clothes in Madhya Pradesh. He had also said, “I do not wear a sweater because I am not scared of cold. I will wear a sweater once I start feeling cold.”
However, as he reached Jammu and Kashmir, he was seen wearing what looked like a black jacket in Jammu and Kashmir.
Netizens were quick to notice the change in Rahul Gandhi after Congress had touted his t-shirt-wearing stunt as a mark of bravery and empathy. Sakshi Singh wrote, “Finally Rahul is feeling cold & Rahul is wearing a sweater. But I feel bad for Rahul’s PR team who were bent upon proving Rahul a “Great man” for not wearing a sweater in cold. Hypocrite!”
Rajesh Ranjan posted, “Seems that Rahul Gandhi is afraid of the cold today. Because one who fears the cold can only feel the cold.”
Manoj Pradhan tweeted, “How come a Tapaswi like RG felt cold today? Is it rightwing who Has adulterated the climate of Kashmir?”
It is notable that on January 8, Congress supporters danced shirtless in the biting cold in Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra (BJY) after the Congress leader was hailed as Prime Minister candidate for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections for wearing just a t-shirt.
However, later the Congress party claimed that Rahul Gandhi was wearing raincoat as it was raining, and he took off if after the rain stopped. Jammu and Kashmir Congress also posted a video on Twitter where Rahul Gandhi is seen taking off the raincoat/jacket while walking on the road during his Bharat Jodo Yatra.
J&K Congress tweeted, “Rain over, Raincoat gone”.
Before that, the party had tweeted, “It’s a raincoat not jacket”. Some videos of the yatra show that there was light rains when Rahul Gandhi was seen in the ‘jacket’.
Note: This report has been updated with additional information.