Sena lauds Bachchan,says Cong allergic to him

“Amitabh Bachchan is a great artiste and there should not be any controversy over him,” it said. “Bachchan is a patriot willing to make sacrifices for the country… unlike the Italian-born Sonia Gandhi who is the brand ambassador of the Congress despite not accepting Indian citizenship for 17 years after marrying Rajiv Gandhi.”

The editorial asked why Bachchan was being treated like an untouchable. “What crime has he committed? Is he a thief,a dacoit or a terrorist?… It is not a crime to become the brand ambassador of Gujarat. He stays in Mumbai and he has never declined to do the same for Maharashtra.”

The mouthpiece also pointed out that brand ambassadors do not necessarily brighten political prospects. “Bachchan was the brand ambassador of Uttar Pradesh when Mulayam was the chief minister and it was a topic of criticism for the Congress. But did Samajwadi Party come to power in Uttar Pradesh simply because Bachchan praised the Mulayam government on screen?.. Bachchan is not a political personality… people don’t vote on these lines. They (the people) love artistes,praise them.”

Maintaining that the presence of Bachchan brightened up the event,the editorial asked Chief Minister Ashok Chavan to emulate Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi by undertaking developmental work and controlling corruption. It also asked Chavan to introspect why industries were shunning Maharashtra and preferring Gujarat for investments. “The Congresswallahs tolerate (Shah Rukh) Khan,but are allergic to Amitabh,” it said.

Bachchan was invited to the event by the Maharashtra Stare Road Development Corporation headed by NCP minister Jaidutt Kshirsagar,leading to a rift between the ruling allies.