A youth Hitesh Chauhan throws shoe at PM in Ahmedabad

Hitesh Narsinhbhai Chauhan, a computer engineering student from Ahmedabad’s Bapunagar area flung his shoe at Prime Minister Shri Manmohan Singh during an election rally at Sanskar Kendra ground in Ahmedabad on Sunday. The shoe landed well short of the raised stage from where the Prime Minister was reading out a speech.

Hitesh who lives in Ahmedabad’s Meghmani society, in Bapunagar area is 6th semester student at Gandhinagar’s engineering college. Hitesh was sitting in front row in Prime Minister’s rally. He stood up first and then hurled his white sport shoe towards the stage. “Gujarat ke vikas ke liya apne kuch nahi kiya. Jhooth bolna bandh karo. Tame Gujarat jode anyay karyo che. (You have done nothing for Gujarat’s development. Stop lying. You have done injustice to Gujarat),” Hitesh, who lives in Bapunagar, reportedly said after throwing his shoe. The incident happened soon after Prime Minister Manmoahn Singh started his speech. Shoes didn’t reach even near the raised stage because sufficient distance was kept between the public and the stage. The shoe landed on the ground inside the inner ‘D’ ring of security. Initially the people sitting around Hitesh caught him after which Security officials immediately overpowered him. The Prime Minister stopped his speech for a moment as one of his Security personnel rushed towards the spot where the shoe had landed. The PM then after continued reading out his speech. Security personnel kicked the shoe out of the protected inner ring periphery.

Hitesh was first taken away to Crime Branch office, located at just another side of River Sabarmati, he was then taken to Ellis bridge Police Station under whose jurisdiction, the place of incidence falls.

According to Gujarat’s leader of opposition Shaktisinh Gohil who was present with the PM on stage, the Prime Minister, after reading out his speech, told him to convey the police, not to lodge a case against Hitesh and forgive him. Gohil then phoned DCP (crime) Abhay Chudasma, and conveyed the prime minister’s decision. Officials at the Congress Bhavan even sent a fax to the police control room, seeking Hitesh’s release. Gujarat BJP spokes person Yamal Vyas condemned the act.

Sources in Hitesh’s college said that last year he was elected as the institute’s general secretary. Later, he started a stir against a fee hike at the college.