UP CM Akhilesh Yadav had a piece of advice for megastar Amitabh Bachchan, "don't advertise for the donkeys of Gujarat".
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav had a piece of advice for megastar Amitabh Bachchan, "don't advertise for the donkeys of Gujarat". Without taking any name, he referred to the advertisement in which Bachchan, the brand ambassador of Gujarat Tourism, is seen inviting tourists to visit the Wild Ass Sanctuary located in Little Rann of Kutch in the state.
"Ek gadhe ka vigyapan aata hai. Main iss sadi ke sabse bade mahanayak se kahunga ke ab aap Gujarat ke gadhon ka prachar mat kariye (There's an ad on TV which shows donkeys. I appeal to century's biggest star, please stop endorsing the donkeys of Gujarat)," Akhilesh said, giving an interesting twist to the no-holds-barred election campaign.
"What will happen if the donkeys also start getting advertised?," the UP CM asked the audience.
The bitter remarks came at a time when parties are racing to the finish line of the state polls described by many as the semi-final before the 2019 Union election.
Reacting to the incident, BJP’s Venkaiah Nahidu said: “Wo disturb hoke aise bhasha ka istemaal kar rahe hain,Gujarat ka janta ka apmaan kar rahe hain,beech mein donkey kaha se aaya.”
(He is disturbed that’s why he is making such statements and insulting the people of Gujarat. How did a donkey turn up in this discussion?)
Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi exuded confidence that the BJP-Apna Dal alliance would form the next government in Uttar Pradesh while the ruling Samajwadi Party, the Congress and the BSP were "merely trying to salvage their face." Addressing a rally in Andhawa, 40 kms from the city, Modi also mocked at the SP-Congress alliance, recalling the "27 saal, UP behaal.." slogan with the remark that "those who were lamenting about the state's plight have ended up joining hands with the ones who they blamed for the current state of affairs".
Seeking to strike a personal rapport, the Prime Minister said, "I am a member of Parliament from UP but all my efforts to serve the state have been negated by the SP government".
In a region having a substantial Kurmi population, Modi referred to its ally Apna Dal more than twice and signed off his 45-minute speech saying "the country would have been different, had Sardar Patel been its first Prime Minister."
With inputs from agencies
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