A video of former Chinese President Hu Jintao being forcefully escorted out of the venue of Chinese Communist Party's 20th National Congress went viral on Saturday. The shocking video left many wondering what was behind the purge of the leader and whether Xi Jinping, who is set to secure a third term as President, had any role in it.
However, the Chinese state media has come up with an explanation late Saturday. According to Xinhua, the former Chinese president was "not feeling well."
China’s official news agency Xinhua said in a tweet late on Saturday: "Xinhuanet reporter Liu Jiawen has learned that Hu Jintao insisted on attending the closing session of the party’s 20th national congress, despite the fact that he has been taking time to recuperate recently."
A second tweet said: "When he was not feeling well during the session, his staff, for his health, accompanied him to a room next to the meeting venue for a rest. Now, he is much better."
The footage, which went viral, shows the 79-year-old leader being dragged away by two stewards. Hu was seated to the left of Xi Jinping. The video shows a steward repeatedly trying to lift Hu from his seat as the other shows him the way off the stage of the main auditorium of the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
Hu then put his hand on a sheet of paper placed on Xi's folder but Xi quickly put his hand on the sheet.
The former president then appeared distressed as he resisted being forcefully led out and, at one point, tried to return to his seat. He was also seen exchanging words with Xi and patting on the should of Premier Li Keqiang, seated to the right of Xi. However, Xi was seen ignoring Hu.
The video went viral on Twitter but, interestingly, was no where on Chinese social media 'Weibo.' However, a few social media users commented on the incident on the old posts featuring Hu.
But, even those comments were no longer visible by Saturday evening, according to Retuers. No Chinese media mentioned the incident while reporting the Congress, except for Xinhua's 'explanation.'