Ahead of his lecture at Cambridge University on Wednesday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi trimmed his hair and beard for the first time since he began the Bharat Jodo Yatra.
The 136-day yatra started from Kanyakumari and ended in Jammu and Kashmir, passing through 12 states, and completing a distance of over 4,000 km. When Gandhi started the yatra, he was in his usual avatar, clean-shaven and short haired. But as the days and the yatra progressed, his hair and beard grew out.
Gandhi arrived in London on Tuesday for a week-long trip that includes a talk for students at his alma mater, Cambridge University. Gandhi, as a Visiting Fellow of the Cambridge Judge Business School (Cambridge JBS) gave a speech on "Learning to Listen in the 21st Century."
Several social media users posted pictures of the Congress MP with trimmed hair and a groomed beard, some of which used the hashtag #NewLook.
During his 12-state march, which spanned over four months and covered over 4,000 kilometers, the 52-year-old had let his hair and beard grow out freely.
Cambridge JBS on Tuesday tweeted, "Our @CambridgeMBA programme is pleased to welcome India's leading Opposition leader and MP Rahul Gandhi of the Indian National Congress."
Gandhi is on a week-long tour of England and will interact with the Indian diaspora in London on March 5. He will also meet the members of the Indian Overseas Congress (IOC) in London. The IOC is the overseas wing of the Congress party.
He spoke last at the University of Cambridge on a visit to the UK in May 2022 at an event at Corpus Christi College called "India at 75."
Rahul Gandhi had departed for the UK After the three-day Congress leadership meeting in Raipur, Chhattisgarh.