Shinde has a life beyond Patna: Khurshid

Updated

New Delhi, Oct 29 (PTI): Dismissing BJP criticism on the Union Home Minister attending a Bollywood music launch hours after serial blasts in Patna, Congress leader Salman Khurshid has said Sushilkumar Shinde "has a life beyond Patna".

Khurshid also criticised BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi for going ahead with the Patna rally despite the blasts, saying "after an event like this happens, you should give up whatever happens".

Defending Shinde for attending the music release of a film just hours after the blast, the External Affairs Minister said, "Shinde has a life beyond Patna....and the awful thing that happened."

"The law and order was the responsibility of the state government and if the state government was to ask Shinde or the Home Ministry to take over something, he would be there on the phone," he said.

Criticising Modi for going ahead with the rally, the External Affairs Minister said, "May I ask was the rally suspended? You criticised Shinde for carrying on with life as usual but nobody has asked questions that nothing happened to Modi, he went on with his speech, not a word about the people who died, because it was not in the script or was it in the script that we had not seen?"

The Union Minister slammed Modi, saying that instead of attending to those injured in the blasts he went ahead with the rally.

"Should you not attend to people who were hurt? Should you not try to find out what has happened? He continued with his speech ....much worse....much worse," he said.

The union minister also took on Modi for criticising the Congress party on the issue of dynasty politics. Referring to Maneka and Varun Gandhi, he said the (Gandhi) family that irks Modi so much are also a part of BJP.

"There is a very eminent leader in BJP Mrs Maneka Gandhi and Mr Varun Gandhi, a young and bright general secretary of the party. For him (Modi), if you leave Congress, then you are not a part of the family but if you are in Congress, then your are a part of the (Gandhi) family."

Earlier Report: Oct 28

BJP criticises Shinde for attending music function post blasts

Lucknow/New Delhi, Oct 28 (PTI): Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde today faced flak from BJP for attending a Bollywood music function soon after the serial blasts in Patna, as the party alleged it has become a habit of Union ministers not to give attention to governance.

Senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi told reporters in Lucknow that "after serial blasts in Patna it was expected that the Home Minister will go there, but instead he attended a Bollywood programme and even apologised for reaching there late."

In New Delhi, BJP spokesperson Siddarth Nath Singh said when the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack had happened, the then Home Minister was seen frequently changing his clothes before speaking to the media.

"And now when serial blasts took place at Hunkar rally in Patna, Shinde was at the music launch function. It has become a habit of Congress ministers not to give any attention to better governance but give more emphasis on their clothes and music," he said.

Shinde had yesterday attended the music launch of film 'Rajjo' starring Kangana Ranaut in Mumbai, a few hours after serial blasts rocked a rally in Patna which was attended by BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.

"It is shocking to find the Home Minister entertaining himself in a music function instead of monitoring the situation after the serial blasts," another BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said.

The Home Minister has not yet said anything about his presence in the music launch function.

In his address at the function, Shinde had said he initially thought that he would not be able to attend the function due to the explosions in Patna.

"You all know what had happened in Patna. I thought that I would not be able to come here. But, from my heart, I wanted to attend the function...," he said.