Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan was visiting flood-hit areas.
After two days of opposition and social media barbs, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan broke his silence on the picture of his being carried by two policemen during a visit to flood-hit area of the state, saying he was caught unawares by them.
"In Panna, at one place, a group of villagers were sitting on the other side of a small bridge and I started walking towards them and before I could realise and react, the police constables picked me up and took me there," the Chief Minister clarified.
Earlier, government sources had told NDTV that Mr Chouhan was carried as the local police and administration officials decided that they could not risk the Chief Minister getting hurt or being bitten by snakes.
News agency PTI had quoted Principal Secretary SK Mishra as saying that the Chief Minister had a 'Z' category security and the security personnel had to ensure that he is not bitten by any poisonous animal in the flood waters.
"Chouhan in fact risked his life to cross the swollen nullah. He is too sensitive to people's problems. He is meeting people affected by flood round-the-clock. We should appreciate his concern, sensitivity for the people rather taking it the other way round," Mr Mishra was quoted as saying.
The pictures released by the state Public Relations department - showing the 57-year-old chief minister carried through ankle-deep water and one in which he was seen walking barefoot through mud, an aide carrying his shoes - were shared widely on social media.
It raised hackles of the opposition and the civil society about the nation's deeply-entrenched VIP culture. On Twitter, people had been vocal, and the Congress said it depicted the Chief Minister's "feudal mindset".