Actor-turned-BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha’s book launch function on Wednesday turned out to be a show of disgruntled party leaders, who publicly took dig at the lead NDA party for being at the receiving end of a discriminatory regime.
Sinha in his biography “Anything But Khamosh” scoffs at party president Amit Shah in the context of humiliating Bihar Assembly poll defeat. “Amit Shah, our party president, had predicted with great confidence that we would win with 2/3rd majority. Perhaps it had become a habit with him because he had said the same thing in Delhi also. But ultimately we got only two or three seats there instead of 2/3rd,” Shatrughan Sinha smirked, as per page 185 of the book.
The launch “Anything But Khamosh” which the writer claims is the “most honest biography on the most controversial actor of Hindi cinema and Indian politics” was graced by patriarch L K Advani.
And seated next to him on the dais along with Shatrughan Sinha, his wife Poonam, actress daughter Sonakshi and son Kush was former union minister Yashwant Sinha, who too is on the wrong side of the present dispensation.
On the second row among audience was suspended MP Kirti Azad, who is facing the fear of being expelled from the party for taking on Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in DDCA case, and his wife Poonam and Union ministers Harsha Vardhan and V K Singh.
Leaders from other parties – Randeep Surjewala and Digvijay SIngh from the Congress and former Samajwad Party leader Amar Singh were also among the guests at the function that had captured media attention in anticipation that either the book or peeved leaders present would provide fodder generating controversy. Even Advani was mindful of the expectation that the book launch gathering “might create controversy”.
