Ahead of the October Assembly polls in the State, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Tuesday was hooted by the large crowd which had come here to attend Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s function to lay the foundation stone of a highway project. Hooda, the two-time Chief Minister of the State had to face embarrassing moments when the crowd shouted him down. He later vowed not to take part in any function of the Prime Minister. When Hooda began his speech, he was shouted down by people chanting ‘Modi, Modi’.
As soon as Hooda started speaking from a prepared speech, people raised slogans against the Congress leader and hooted him. “This should not have happened. The BJP committed a wrong by allowing supporters to shout me down. I will never go to another function of the PM again,” an angry Hooda told reporters at Kaithal after the function.
After Union Minister of State for Transport, Krishan Pal Gurjar and Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari had spoken, Hooda faced hooting from the crowds, which also raised slogans against him and the Congress Government. Though Hooda hurriedly continued to read out from his prepared speech, Modi, who reached here in the afternoon by a helicopter, waved to the crowds urging them to maintain composure. However, the crowds were in no mood to pay heed and continued to interrupt the Chief Minister during his speech, which was completely inaudible.
Hooda took strong exception to the manner in which the BJP turned the official function of the Prime Minister into a political rally. He termed it as a “planned conspiracy” saying he always keeps the office of Prime Minister in high esteem. The Chief Minister said the office of Prime Minister does not belong to any political party, but it’s an institutional entity, but today its dignity has been lowered. “Even earlier the Prime Minister belonging to the Congress had been visiting non-Congress ruled States but never before such a situation has been witnessed,” he added.
Several BJP leaders from the State, party MPs from Haryana, besides Birender Singh, who recently joined the saffron party after deserting Congress, were present on the occasion.