Santiniketan: Congress General-Secretary Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday was given a tumultuous welcome by students at Visva Bharati University as he began his three-day trip to West Bengal.
Rahul Gandhi, whose family has had long standing ties with the university founded by Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore seemed in high spirits as he shook hands with students.
The young leader had to take a detour via Panagarh as his helicopter could not take off from Kolkata due to heavy rains. He was instead flown to Panagarh from where he took a helicopter to Birbhum district's Bolpur, which houses the university christened Santiniketan by Tagore's father.
Minutes after landing at the makeshift helipad, Gandhi jumped a barricade to go and meet some girls who had been standing there, and then he got into his car.
Later, when his motorcade reached the Uttarayan gate of the university, Gandhi again walked up to the students cheering him. His great-grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru, grandmother Indira Gandhi and father Rajiv Gandhi — all of whom served as India's prime minister and also discharged their duties as the central university's chancellor — were great draws among students, teachers and other staff during frequent visits to Santiniketan.
Gandhi is slated to inaugurate an exhibition called "Three Chancellors - Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi".
No appreciation
Gandhi, interacting with the students, said allegations of corruption always draw applause but those who come up with solutions to such problems get no appreciation.
"When you bring corruption allegations, then many will applaud you, but when you think of doing some work against corruption, then only a few will appreciate you.
"But when you actually do some work to stop corruption, then there will be none by your side to clap," he said during a question-answer session with students of the Visva-Bharati University.
