Chandigarh, Aug. 21 -- The protest staged by Haryana Congress leaders near the Haryana Kaushal Rozgar Nigam (HKRN) office in Panchkula on Wednesday nearly turned into a face-off between former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and former assembly speaker Kuldeep Sharma, once close associates who have since fallen out.

People close to Sharma said that Hooda allegedly told Thanesar MLA Ashok Arora, who was coordinating the protest, not to include Sharma among the speakers. Hooda, however, denied the allegation on Thursday.

Leaders close to the former speaker said Sharma overheard the exchange between Hooda and Arora. "Ashok Arora was conducting the stage. Hooda asked him as to who all would speak. To this, Arora said that former minist...