BJP Chief Ministerial Candidate for Delhi Kiran Bedi during an election campaign
It is not something you would expect from a former police officer, but then it is election season. When Kiran Bedi, the BJP's presumptive chief minister, campaigned in south Delhi on Friday, she couldn't resist pulling babies over to her car.
Ms Bedi, waving to a crowd from an open jeep, reached out to take children in her arms at least thrice and seated two of them on the bonnet. Though the jeep was moving slowly through the lanes of Jangpura, her team members gasped as the toddlers were passed around and precariously placed on the top of the vehicle.
"Sambhal ke (watch it!)," the BJP supporters said, though the parents didn't protest. Soon, Ms Bedi's team discouraged her from pulling in children.
Kiran Bedi joined the BJP earlier this month, and was campaigning for another new BJP recruit, former Aam Aadmi Party member MS Dhir, who is contesting the February 7 Delhi election from Jangpura.
"She's a bold lady," Mr Dhir said, when NDTV asked whether he thought what Ms Bedi did was unsafe.
The roadshow took a comic turn when Kiran Bedi jumped onto the bonnet and sat on it cross-legged to be closer to the crowd. The move appeared to overshadow the candidate, MS Dhir, who kept fidgeting, apparently to join Kiran Bedi on the bonnet.
The campaign jeep had no mike, so Kiran Bedi was seen pulling some women closer and whispering in their ears; she has lost her voice because of a throat infection.
When an aide suggested that Ms Bedi should move to another jeep that had loudspeakers, she hopped down and quickly jumped on to the other vehicle. Mr Dhir, appearing significantly less agile, tried to keep up. But Ms Bedi soon realized that the big loudspeakers were almost hiding her face. So she returned to the previous jeep, but not before Mr Dhir had secured a spot on the bonnet.
Ms Bedi refused to speak to any of the waiting media, but Mr Dhir told NDTV, "Yes, she's getting a lot of attention."
The capital votes on February 7 for its next government. Results will be declared on the 10th.