By Subhash K. Jha, IANS,
Mumbai : Film star turned Bharatiya Janata Party MP Shatrughan Sinha has come down heavily on his party for sacking senior leader Jaswant Singh for his book praising Pakistan founder Mohammed Ali Jinnah, and said a politician could not be prevented from having a personal ideology.
Speaking out for the first time on the expulsion of Jaswant Singh, Sinha said: “I’ve so far kept quiet. But now I’ll say this much. How can a senior member of a party be expelled for writing a book, which no one had written?”
“And how can a politician be not allowed to have a personal ideology? I play so many roles (in films). If tomorrow after watching me play a dacoit, some youth decide to rob a bank, does it mean I should give up acting?”
Jaswant Singh, who has held defence, finance and external affairs portfolios in BJP-led governments, was expelled Aug 19 for his controversial book “Jinnah: India – Partition, – Independence”.
Sinha recently shot for Sony TV’s game show “Dus Ka Dum” in a long-flowing Sherwani. And when he was playfully asked by host Salman Khan if this was the (Jawaharlal) Nehru code of dressing, the actor never short of retorts, replied: “No, nowadays it’s known as the Jinnah code of dressing.”
When asked about the incident, Sinha said: “Yes, this did happen. I did refer to my dress code on ‘Dus Ka Dum’ as the Jinnah style of dressing. Salman had been keen on inviting me and Hemaji (Malini) together for a long time. We decided to go on the show as the grand finale.” Film actor Hema Malini is a former BJP MP.