A youth slapped Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who was riding an open jeep, in full public view in Panipat this evening and was taken into custody immediately.

The Chief Minister had gone to Panipat, some 80-km from Delhi, to inaugurate and lay foundation stone of various projects.

As Hooda's Maruti Gypsy was making its way through the crowded places, a youth identified as Kamal Mukhija broke the security ring and slapped the Chief Minister. A senior police officer told PTI that the youth, who was suffering from depression, was immediately detained. A case had been registered against him under various sections of the IPC, the officer said.

Hooda, who was taken aback, pushed the youth, attired in blue jeans and a brown jacket, back. The Chief Minister was on his way to address a public meeting when the youth targeted him. The youth was being questioned by police, officials said. Congress sources said Hooda was riding an open jeep as part of the party's road show in Panipat.

In August 2010, a youth, who claimed he was frustrated over the state government's failure to give him a job, had hurled a shoe towards Hooda during a rally in Mahendergrarh. However, the footwear thrown by 21-year-old Shakti Singh fell nearly 70-ft short of the target.