Heavy rains force Sonia Gandhi to abandon chopper ride

Unexpected heavy rains here today forced Congress President Sonia Gandhi to take the road to Thrissur, where she is to address an election meeting.

Even the special flight in which she arrived here was forced to remain airborne for about 30 minutes over the airport due to the downpour and landed around 4 pm. Gandhi was to take a helicopter to Thrissur, about 60 km  from here. However, due to the inclement weather, the chopper ride was abandoned, police sources said.

After a slight delay, the UPA chairperson left for Thrissur in a bullet-proof car. She is addressing election meetings at Thrissur and Kozhikode today, a day before the campaigning for the April 10 Lok Sabha elections comes to a close.