Dhanera: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi’s car was pelted with stones on Friday during his visit to this flood-affected town in Gujarat but he was unhurt, police said.
Mr Gandhi had to cut short his address to a gathering at Lal Chowk area of Dhanera in Banaskantha district as black flags were waved at him by some of those who turned up for the meeting.
The windshield at the rear, in which Mr Gandhi was seated on his way to the helipad in Dhanera from Lal Chowk, was shattered in the attack, a police official said.
However, Mr Gandhi did not suffer any injury and moved on to his next venue, Runi village in Thara taluka, where he asserted his party is not going to be cowed down by stone pelting.
“Won’t step back because of black flags, Narendra Modi slogans or stones,” he said at a gathering in Runi.
“We have detained the man who threw the stone on the vehicle of Rahul Gandhi,” Banaskantha Superintendent of Police Neeraj Badgujar said.
“Right from helipad, police had offered him bulletproof vehicle. After getting down from helicopter, he took bullet-proof vehicle. Later, he got down from that vehicle and took a car of a Congress worker,” the official said.
“Police, convoy marshal and SPG urged him repeatedly to take bullet-proof car for sake of security, but he instead took the vehicle provided by the party,” he further said.
“Police had provided all the security, but he (Rahul Gandhi) was repeatedly stopping the car, even at some sensitive places. He even met unknown people on the way,” Badgujar said, indicating that he broke all security protocol.
The incident sparked immediate protest from the Congress with the party spokesman spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi in New Delhi saying BJP “goons” carried out the “dastardly” attack.
Earlier, Mr Gandhi was heckled by protesters and shown black flags as soon he started his speech at Lal Chowk and he left in a huff.
