MUMBAI: Social activist Anna Hazare on Tuesday expressed his disappointment on the warm embrace his former protege Arvind Kejriwal and Lalu Prasad shared on stage on the sidelines of the Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar's oath ceremony in Patna on Friday.

"It's good that I left Arvind's company, or else I would also be facing a similar predicament," Hazare said.

"Shaking hands with Lalu and hugging him is not okay," Hazare told reporters at his native village Ralegan Siddhi in Ahmednagar district.

Hazare's comments came even as Kejriwal sought to clear the air on the Lalu hug that has become a much discussed topic in the country.

Yadav, Kejriwal claimed on Monday, was the sole author of the warm embrace the two leaders shared.

READ ALSO: 'Betrayal of Anna Hazare's dreams': Arvind Kejriwal's hug with tainted Lalu Prasad continues to haunt AAP

"He shook my hand and pulled me into a hug and then he held my hand and raised it," said the Delhi chief minister, adding, "It was projected and questions were asked."

Photographs of the two leaders went viral on social media and a Kejriwal tweet from two years ago was dug up to remind the former anti-corruption activist of his stand on Lalu Yadav when the latter was convicted in a corruption case.

The hug earned Kejriwal criticism not only on social media but also from political rivals, including former AAP colleague Yogendra Yadav who said, "Political capital of the movement sold to symbols of political corruption. Ashamed!"

READ ALSO: Lalu Prasad pulled me in for a hug, says Arvind Kejriwal at top AAP meeting

Read this story in Marathi: बरं झालं , केजरीवालांची साथ सोडली !: अण्णा