Congress leaders hail Rahul for 'game-changing' speech, say 'hug' not scripted

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 and not a scripted one.

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.

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