Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda urged the people of Haryana to “avenge the insult” meted out to him last week when he was hooted at a function in the Prime Minister's presence.
At a Vijay Sankalp rally in Panipat on Sunday, Mr. Hooda asked the people to give a “befitting reply (by) using your power of ballot in the Assembly polls.”
Mr Hooda was jeered by a crowd at an official function in Kaithal following which he declared he would not share stage with the PM again.
Not placated
In a move aimed to placate the Chief Minister, the Prime Minister had invited Mr. Hooda for tea in Delhi.
However, it does not seem to have had the desired effect. Condemning the Kaithal incident, Mr Hooda said, “though tit-for-tat is against our culture, we will definitely avenge what happened there...in a different way.”
Referring to his father’s contribution as a member of the Constituent Assembly, Mr Hooda said what happened in Kaithal was an insult to the entire state.
The Chief Minister said the people of Haryana have begun to think that the BJP is not a party which will favour farmers but is a party of capitalists. Mr Hooda warned the central government against changing policies like the MGNREGA scheme and Right to Food Act.
He took a dig at BJP president Amit Shah for aspiring to form the next government in Haryana with the help of “defectors.”
Challenging the BJP to name its chief ministerial candidate before the elections, Mr Hooda said that by inducting rejected leaders from other parties, the BJP is full of Chinese parts which have been described by one of its own leaders Sudha Yadav as ‘kabadi’ (rubbish).
The CM also announced sops for farmers, employees and weaker sections of society. These include waiving off loans amounting to Rs 154 crores taken by 1.25 lakh beneficiaries of the SC and Backward classes and relief from interest on crop loans for farmers.
