Slippers hurled at Gehlot camp Minister at Pushkar rally; pro-Sachin Pilot slogans raised

In a massive embarrassment for Congress in Rajasthan, shoes were hurled at Minister for sports and youth affairs Ashok Chandna at an event on Monday. Chandna faced the humiliation during an event to mark the immersion of the ashes of Colonel Kirori Singh Bainsla who played an important role in the Gurjar reservation movement.

Thousands of people had gathered to pay their last respect to Colonel Bainsla, in a show of strength by the community. However, as soon as Chandna got on the stage to deliver his speech, people started protesting and waving shoes at him. Some even hurled their shoes towards the stage.

As per reports, slogans of 'Sachin Pilot Zindabad' were raised from the very beginning of the program. The protests started when Industries Minister Shakuntala Rawat started delivering her speech. She announced the opening of a college in the name of Colonel Bainsla at Karauli, but people continued to interrupt her speech with 'Sachin Pilot Zindabad' slogans. Somehow, Rawat managed to deliver her speech.

However, when Chandna got on the stage, some people from the crowd waved shoes and slippers at him. While the police pacified the agitators, Chandna was forced to leave midway.

Infuriated by this, the Congress minister took to Twitter and wrote, "Today a wonderful sight was witnessed when Rajendra Rathod, (then cabinet member) who ordered the killing of 72 persons was applauded when he came on the stage, while shoes were hurled at those, whose family went to jail during the (Gurjar reservation) agitation."

"Family members of the martyrs were sitting on the platform at which the shoes were thrown. At least they should have been taken care of," Chandna said in another tweet. "Time will tell how far these people who have tarnished the last memory of the Colonel will go," he added.

'The day we battle...': Ashok Chandna's warning to Pilot

Chandna also launched a scathing attack on former Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot saying that he was using such tactics to intimidate Ashok Gehlot's supporters and to become the CM.

"If Sachin Pilot wants to become the Chief Minister by throwing shoes at me, he can do so, because I do not wish to fight him today. The day we battle, only one of us will survive, and I do not want that," he said in a tweet.

All is not well in the Rajasthan Congress where CM Ashok Gehlot is engaged in a power tussle with his former Deputy Sachin Pilot. Recently in April, Pilot had given an ultimatum to Congress President Sonia Gandhi to change the leadership in Rajasthan, stating that the party will lose all elections under Gehlot.