Rahul Gandhi, you stole the show: Shiv Sena on Congress chief hugging PM Modi

A picture of Rahul Gandhi hugging Prime Minister Modi on the floor of the House was highlighted on the front page of Shiv Sena mouthpiece Saamana.

The Shiv Sena, an estranged ally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP government at the Centre, has lauded Congress president Rahul Gandhi in its mouthpiece Saamana over the latter’s speech during no-confidence motion in Lok Sabha on Friday.

The moment of Rahul Gandhi hugging Prime Minister Modi on the floor of the House was highlighted on the front page of the Shiv Sena mouthpiece with headline in Marathi – Bhawa Jinkalans, which roughly translates to “brother you stole the show”.

The article in Saamana highlighted parts of Rahul Gandhi’s speech such as his allegation of Prime Minister Modi colluding with big business houses and “jumla strike”.

According to Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena, Rahul Gandhi displayed political tradition by hugging Prime Minister Modi after his speech. The article pointed how the gesture of the Congress president ruled the media and social media platforms.

After lashing out at Prime Minister Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) during his speech in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi said he might be a “pappu” for the ruling party, but he had no hatred for them in his heart. Soon after, Rahul Gandhi walked up to the Prime Minister.

PM Modi first extended his hand for a handshake but was caught off guard as the Gandhi scion embraced him in a hug. The Prime Minister responded to it with a handshake and patted Rahul Gandhi on the back.

The Prime Minister later took a dig at the Gandhi scion over his action. Imitating the Congress chief, PM Modi said that some people were in hurry to grab the Prime Minister’s seat.

Rahul Gandhi’s action did not go down well with Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan as well. She said that the Gandhi scion should have taken the position of Prime Minister into consideration before walking up to him and hugging him.

The Speaker didn't approve of the entire move of Rahul and objected to it saying she was surprised at the 'drama' that was taking place inside the House.