Rahul dons 'pheran' in Kashmir's cold as Bharat Jodo Yatra comes to close

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who set off a national debate when he walked the Bharat Jodo Yatra in a T-shirt in north India's cold winter, donned a 'pheran' to ward off Kashmir's bone-freezing chill on Monday.

As the snow fell steadily, carpeting much of the Valley in white, the former Congress president was seen in a sleeveless jacket over his trademark white T-shirt earlier in the morning and then in the traditional long cloak worn by Kashmiris.

Soon after attending an event at the Pradesh Congress Committee headquarters on Maulana Azad Road here, Gandhi, who walked over 4,000 kilometres in 136 days, emerged in a grey pheran as he headed to the Sher-e-Kashmir Cricket stadium for the closing ceremony of the Bharat Jodo Yatra.

Gandhi's white T-shirt hit the limelight when the yatra entered Delhi, his supporters praising his resilience while his opponents criticised him. Gandhi, on his part, said he decided to wear only T-shirts during the march after meeting three poor girls "shivering in torn clothes" in Madhya Pradesh.

That's when he decided that he won't wear a sweater until he shivers, the Congress leader said.

The rush of adrenaline the Wayanad Lok Sabha member might have experienced during his foot march from south to north was also exhibited by former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah who walked from Banihal to Qazigund.

Both the leaders were seen dressed in similar T-shirts while everyone around them were covered in several layers of clothing.