NEW DELHI: A helicopter carrying Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was forced to make an emergency landing in Rewari in Haryana after it failed to touch ground in Delhi due to bad weather on Friday.
Gandhi was returning to Delhi from Mahendragarh in Haryana where he addressed an election rally in place of his mother and Congress president Sonia Gandhi, who is down with a viral infection.
Later, he left for Delhi by road.
When contacted, Rewari Deputy Commissioner Yashendra Singh told PTI that Gandhi spent about 20 minutes at the college ground before proceeding to Delhi.
"There was an emergency landing. The helicopter landed safely at Rewari," Singh said.
In response to speculations, sources close to Gandhi said his helicopter was forced to abort its landing in Delhi due to bad weather and not due to a technical snag.
During his short halt in Rewari, Gandhi took the opportunity to play cricket with some children who were practising when he landed there, an aide of former Haryana minister Ajay Singh Yadav said.
The children were seen clicking a selfie with Gandhi.
This was Gandhi's second poll rally in the state that goes to polls on October 21.
Earlier he had addressed a public meeting in Nuh in Mewat region of the state.