Rahul Gandhi's Hug Not Scripted, Says Congress as Oppn Hails His 'Game-changing' Speech

New Delhi: As Congress president Rahul Gandhi launched a hug-capped blistering attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Parliament, his party leaders hailed him for a “game-changing speech” and said the ‘hug’ was a spur-of-the-moment move.

After accusing Modi and his government of indulging in ‘jumla attacks’ in form of demonetisation and other decisions during his speech in Lok Sabha, Gandhi walked up to the treasury benches and hugged Modi, taking the prime minister and others by surprise.

Soon after, several Congress leaders took to Twitter to hail their president and to attack the BJP and the Modi government.

“What an astonishing performance by @RahulGandhi. It was a game changing speech, tearing apart the Govt's claims & ending with that unscripted hug that has literally taken the BJP's breath away #BhukampAaGaya,” Congress leader Shashi Tharoor tweeted.

Several BJP leaders termed Gandhi’s speech and gestures during the no-confidence motion against the government as part of a scripted ‘dramebaazi’.

The social media platform saw several tweets about Gandhi's speech getting hashtagged with 'bhukamp' or earthquake, linking a statement made by the Congress leader in 2016 after demonetisation that people will see an 'earthquake' if the BJP leaders allow him to speak in Parliament.

Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia said, “It (hug) was not scripted. It was on the spur of the moment.”

Party spokesperson Randeep Surjewala asked why the BJP was shaken and why there was so much anger in the saffron party.

“Why isn’t the seedling of love growing. Why so much hatred for Rahul Gandhi and Congress. The PM should have thought that even after being junior to him, the way he (Rahul) showed respect, he should have at least thanked him for that,” Surjewala said, referring to Gandhi’s hug.

He said the country knew the truth and even if Modi may not give answers to questions raised by Gandhi, he should tell the nation when farmers will get rid of debts, the youth get two crore jobs every year and atrocities stop on Dalits, women and weaker sections.

“Be it Giriraj SIngh, or Harsimrat Kaur, or Kiron Kher or Smriti Irani or BJP's official troll spokesperson, I have only one thing to say — Raghupathi Raghav Raja Ram, Aapko bhi sanmati de bhagwan,” he said.

Congress Delhi unit chief Ajay Maken also termed Gandhi’s speech as “excellent” and his hug a “winner”.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) also came out in support of Gandhi’s hug, saying policies should be opposed in Parliament, not individuals.

Senior AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh said the prime minister often hugs the heads of foreign countries so what was wrong about Gandhi hugging him in Parliament.

“Parliament is the biggest temple of democracy where policies should be opposed, not individuals. But the BJP people do not like hugs, they believe in abuse,” Singh claimed.

The former deputy chief minister of Bihar, Tejashwi Yadav also took to Twitter to congratulate the Congress chief on his speech.