New Delhi:
The Congress has found an unexpected ally in its battle against booing: The ruling Akali Dal of Punjab, which also happens to be a key ally of the BJP.
Today, Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal berated the public heckling of Congress chief ministers in no uncertain terms. "This unhealthy practice is not only undemocratic but also ethically and morally deplorable," he said during a function in Ludhiana.
The BJP, which maintained the heckling was just a measure of the public mood, also struck a conciliatory note. Senior BJP leader and Union home minister Rajnath Singh has asked the Congress to reconsider its advice to chief ministers to stop sharing stage with Mr Modi.
Mr Singh, who was in Gorakhpur today, said the Congress took the boycott decision even though the PM had appealed to the public to remain calm during the functions. "Our Prime Minister believes in healthy democracy and believes that everyone should get the opportunity to speak at a public function," he said.
The Congress maintains the BJP is engineering the booing and "no self-respecting chief minister" would share stage with Mr Modi if this state of affairs continues. Two Congress chief ministers - Prithviraj Chavan of Maharashtra and Bhupinder Singh Hooda of Haryana -- have already declared they would not share stage with Me Modi.
The heckling, though, is not directed only at Congress chief ministers. Yesterday, Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren, who belongs to the UPA ally Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, was also booed at a public function in presence of Mr Modi. Later, Mr Soren called it a "rape of the democratic system".