Katihar: Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, who is on his ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’, on Saturday met fox nut farmers working in marshy lands and tried to understand their challenges.
Rahul Gandhi had kickstarted his Voter Adhikar Yatra on August 17 from Sasaram and reached Katihar on August 23, on the seventh day of his yatra.
While north Bihar is known for the production of fox nut, which is in high demand in several countries, Rahul Gandhi, during his yatra, surprisingly stopped his vehicle near Simaria Chowk area and went to interact with the farmers working in marshy lands.
Several districts of north Bihar, including Darbhanga, Madhubani, and Katihar, are known for fox nut farming due to frequent flooding.
Rahul Gandhi pulled up his pants and went inside the marshy land, even trying his hand at bringing out the fox nut.
Rahul Gandhi spent almost 25 minutes with the fox nut farmers and asked them how tough and challenging their job is and how much they earn while working in such extreme conditions.
While speaking to The Sunday Guardian, Mohammad Sultan, who interacted with the Gandhi scion, said, “Rahul Gandhi came to us, it was a surprise for me.”
He said that during his stay with them, Rahul Gandhi himself came inside the marshy field and asked how they sow seeds and how they bring out the fox nut.
Sultan further stated that he showed Rahul Gandhi how they have to remain in water for several hours every day to take out the fox nut from their lilies.
“He also asked me how much we earn, to which I told him that we get Rs 40 per kilogram of fox nut that we bring out,” Sultan narrated.
Sultan also mentioned that Rahul Gandhi asked about the condition of their hands and feet as they have to remain in water for hours, and added that they showed him their palms.
He also mentioned that Rahul Gandhi asked if they take medicines for their hands and feet or not, and then got a picture clicked with them.
Rahul Gandhi has been touring Bihar for the ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’, alleging vote theft and claiming that lakhs of eligible voters have been removed from draft voter rolls under the SIR exercise being carried out by the Election Commission.
On Saturday, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister joined the yatra in Katihar, and in the coming days Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK leader M.K. Stalin, Jharkhand Chief Minister and JMM leader Hemant Soren, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, and party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra are also all set to join the yatra.
The yatra will conclude on August 30 in Bihar’s Ara, and a mega rally is planned in Patna’s Gandhi Maidan on September 1.
