Former IPS officer Kiran Bedi with BJP chief Amit Shah, after she joined the party with just days to go for the Delhi Assembly elections. (Press Trust of India)
Kiran Bedi, former top cop and the BJP's ace in the Delhi elections, says her "views have evolved" and opinions that she had earlier expressed on Twitter against Prime Minister Narendra Modi were influenced by "information put out by the media." (
Want Direct Fight With Arvind Kejriwal, Says Kiran Bedi to NDTV)
As Ms Bedi made a high profile entry into the BJP on Thursday, expressing gratitude and lavishing praise on PM Modi, people gleefully dug into her Twitter feed and brought out a post from March 2013. The Aam Aadmi Party too joined issue, and retweeted Ms Bedi's old posts on the microblogging site. (
AAP Takes a Dig at Kiran Bedi, Shazia Ilmi Joining BJP, Retweets Old Tweets)
They also found another tweet that said:
The 65-year-old was unruffled when asked about it. "We go by the information the media feeds us. I went by what you people told us. Even now, the media is projecting the good work he's doing. Both the times, I went by the information fed by the media. My views have evolved," she told NDTV this morning. Kiran Bedi: (
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But with 20 days to go for a highly charged Delhi assembly election, the opposition is unlikely to accept Ms Bedi's explanation. (
Arvind Kejriwal Hits Out At Kiran Bedi, Shazia Ilmi For Negative Politics Comments)
Omar Abdullah, former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and avid Tweeter (forgeting what we call them) had a word of advice for the debutante politician.
A Twitter user suggested that Ms Bedi should have applied what he called the "social media history reset" before joining politics. Ms Bedi is very active on Twitter and has 3.6 million followers. (
'I was Very Impressed with PM Modi's Leadership Qualities,' Says Kiran Bedi: Highlights)
But Kiran Bedi, no stranger to controversy, says she believes in looking ahead and wants to focus her energies on "development and positive politics." (
Former Aam Aadmi Party leader Shazia Ilmi Joins the BJP)