Speculation has been swirling since former Chinese President Hu Jintao was escorted out from the closing session of China’s twice a decade Communist Party’s Congress on Saturday (Oct 22), which saw Mr Hu's successor, Xi Jinping secure an unprecedented third term at the helm.

CNA’s cameras captured the moments just prior to Mr Hu's departure, which took place soon after local and foreign media were allowed to enter the auditorium to cover proceedings around 11.15am. It came shortly after Chinese state media announced that delegates had elected a new Central Committee and Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, which media were not allowed into the hall to witness.

Current chairman of China's legislature Li Zhanshu is seen taking papers out of Mr Hu's hand, before a man comes to speak to him and escorts him out.

Following Mr Hu’s departure, proceedings continued with delegates voting on other items on the agenda including an amendment to the party’s constitution. Addressing the incident later that night, Chinese state media attributed the incident to health reasons. In a tweet written in English, Xinhua said that Mr Hu was “not feeling well” during the session and for his health, staff had accompanied to a room next to the meeting venue “for a rest”. Mr Hu's name was censored from Chinese social media. #ccp #hujintao #xijinping