Despite 5-Hour Wait, Tiny "Fan" Missed Meeting Rahul Gandhi, And Then...

As Rahul Gandhi addressed Congress workers at an auditorium in Kerala's Kannur district on Wednesday, a seven-year-old boy waited outside for nearly five hours, just to catch a glimpse of the Congress chief. Nandan, who considers himself a "fan" of Rahul Gandhi, however, had to return home disappointed due to security reasons.

Rahul Gandhi's new Wayanad Twitter account on Thursday shared a story about Nandan, adding that his wish to speak to the Congress chief had been fulfilled.

According to a local media report, the "little fan"'s mother received a phone call that said, "Hi, I am Rahul Gandhi. May I speak with your son?". "This is your Rahul Gandhi. Mone (beta), speak to him," the mother told the boy.

The report says Nandan had reached the auditorium with his parents at 5 am on Wednesday, but could not get entry inside the hall. The seven-year-old who had a photo of Rahul Gandhi pinned to his shirt, also carried with him a letter he had written to his "most favourite person", expressing his wishes to meet him some day. Rahul Gandhi's address was scheduled for 9 am.

7-year-old Nandan had a photo of Rahul Gandhi pinned to his shirt.

Nandan's father had then written about the incident in a Facebook post which went viral. A local Congress leader was informed about the post, who, according to the report, played a role in getting Rahul Gandhi to call the boy.

The social media head of Congress, Divya Spandana on Thursday tweeted to share the story calling it a "sweet gesture by Rahul Gandhi".

A young boy in Kannur waited to see Rahul ji but couldn't, read what happened next or get a Malayalam speaking friend to translate :) I did too. Such a sweet gesture by @RahulGandhi https://t.co/M7Nl01Bn9U

— Divya Spandana/Ramya (@divyaspandana) April 18, 2019

Rahul Gandhi was in Kerala on a 3-day visit and spent Wednesday in Wayanad, the second seat from where he is contesting the Lok Sabha elections, apart from his constituency Amethi in Uttar Pradesh. He had offered prayers at the famous Thirunelli temple and also performed rituals in memory of his grandmother Indira Gandhi and father Rajiv Gandhi, both former prime ministers.

Rahul Gandhi says he decided to contest from Wayanad to prevent the RSS and BJP from "destroying culture and history" of the country. The BJP, however, says Rahul Gandhi is "running away" because he is unsure of his prospects in Amethi, where he has been challenged by Union Minister Smriti Irani for the second time.

Polling in Kerala's 20 seats will be held in a single phase on April 23. Counting of votes will take place on May 23.