Gorakhpur: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, a leader often seen distributing confections to young children, found himself on the receiving end of a gift Friday when a child admirer presented him with a toy bulldozer.

The lighthearted exchange occurred during the Chief Minister’s morning walk at the Gorakhnath Temple, where 4-year-old Yashasvini Singh of Kanpur surprised the leader. The bulldozer has become a frequent political symbol associated with Adityanath's administration and its stance on illegal encroachments.

“This small gift is a symbol of great trust. It's an innocent expression of trust," the Chief Minister’s Office stated in a post on the social media platform X. "Today, during his morning visit to the Gorakhnath Mandir campus, five-year-old Yashaswini from Kanpur presented a toy bulldozer to Chief Minister Shri Yogi Adityanath Ji Maharaj."

A Memorable Interaction

Video footage of the encounter shows Adityanath laughing as he interacted with the girl. Officials noted that the Chief Minister spotted the child, who was visiting the temple with her parents, and called her over to offer her chocolates.

Before revealing the toy, the child reportedly asked the Chief Minister to close his eyes. Upon opening them to find the toy in his hands, Adityanath shared a laugh with those present and posed for a photograph with the young visitor.

“I have given a bulldozer to him because he likes it," Yashasvini told reporters following the meeting. "Yogi Adityanath told me to play and to study hard.”

Family Visit

Yashasvini, a nursery student at Pratap International College in Kanpur, travelled to the temple with her father, Abhay Singh Rajawat, and her mother, Priyadamba Singh, to seek blessings.

Before she departed, the Chief Minister returned the toy to the child, encouraging her to use it for play while maintaining her focus on her education.

With inputs from IANS