BJP slams Hooda for his attempt to visit trouble-torn Rohtak

New Delhi, Feb 22: BJP on Monday ,Feb 22 criticized former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda for his attempt to enter Rohtak, wondering if it is a "political stunt" at a time when the region is "burning" and said such behaviour is not expected of the senior Congress leader.

"At a time when Rohtak is burning, Jhajjar is burning and the situation is bad in Sonipat, you (Hooda) claim that you will go there to appeal for peace. "I do not want to say who added fuel to the fire but please do not show such emotions that make people believe that it is a political stunt. This behaviour is not expected of a senior and seasoned politician like him," BJP General Secretary and the state in-charge Anil Jain said.

Jain said once peace returns to the state, Hooda and other leaders can go but the administration's top priority was to restore law and order. Hooda was today not allowed to visit Rohtak, the epicentre of the Jat stir for quota, due to the law and order problem.

Jain said the situation had "improved" in the state to some extent, noting that blockades and protests at 400 out 450 places have been lifted after the state government "agreed" to the protesters' demands and BJP also formed a committee under Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu in this regard.

BJP leaders also saw a larger "conspiracy" behind the Jat stir turning violent and claimed that the concentration of arson in places like Rohtak, Jhajjar, Sonipat and the neighbouring areas, where Hooda enjoys considerably support, was not a coincidence.

"Let's wait for the identification of the people behind the violence for things to clear," a leader said. They said violent agitation by formidable peasant communities in various states, like Patels in Gujarat, Kapus in Adhra Pradesh besides Jats in Haryana, pointed to a larger "design" aimed at cornering the Narendra Modi government.

PTI