Revealed: Why Narendra Modi went ahead with rally despite Patna blasts

, Oct 29: Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh and Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Minister Manish Tewari hit out at

for not calling off his rally in Patna where six people were killed and many were injured in seven serial bomb blasts on Sunday, Oct 27. However, defending their "conscious decision" to continue with the rally,

leaders finally revealed the reason(s) which encouraged their PM candidate to continue with the scheduled Hunkar Rally.

Former Bihar Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi on Monday put an end to all controversies regarding Gujarat CM's daring act. Sushil Kumar Modi said that they did not want to shift focus to the blasts. He also claimed that by going ahead with rally was the best decision, otherwise there would have been bigger problems such as stampede and many skirmishes if Narendra Modi cancelled his rally.

Narendra Modi did not want to cancel the 'date with Patna'

"Imagine what would have happened if we called it off and then the crowds came to know about the bombs. Our leaders handled the situation very well," added Sushil Kumar Modi. Later Opposition leader in Rajya Sabha, Arun Jaitley too supported the Bihar leader's remark while defending their decision in Patna.

News of first blast at railway station emerged when Narendra Modi landed at Patna airport. Police rushed to him advising him to call off Hunkar Rally. However, he went to the rally venue at Gandhi Maydan as he did not want to cancel his "date with Patna".

The Gujarat CM along BJP President Rajnath Singh urged Bihar BJP leaders to ensure there was no panic at the venue. They also decided not to mention the blasts in their speeches.

Security officials quickly drew up a blueprint for not just the drive from the Patna airport to the Gandhi Maidan, but also an evacuation plan for politicians on stage in case of an attack.

OneIndia News