Election: Priyanka Gandhi Vadra took a swipe at PM Narendra Modi during a rally
Highlights
- The Bachchans were very close to the Nehru-Gandhi family
- Amitabh Bachchan has contested polls from Allahabad and won
- Friendship soured when Bofors charges surfaced; Mr Bachchan resigned
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday included a not-so-subtle dig at mega film star Amitabh Bachchan, who was once one of her father Rajiv Gandhi's closest friends. The Congress leader made the comments in Uttar Pradesh on the last day of an acrimonious campaign for the marathon national election.
"You must understand that you have made the world's biggest actor your Prime Minister. You might as well have chosen Amitabh Bachchan as PM. No one would anyway do anything for you," Priyanka Gandhi said in Mirzapur.
Mirzapur is around 85 km from Allahabad, from where Amitabh Bachchan contested his first and only election, at the instance of Rajiv Gandhi.
The Bachchans were very close to the Nehru-Gandhi family and Amitabh Bachchan ventured into politics briefly when Rajiv Gandhi led the Congress - and swept the 1984 election - after his mother Indira Gandhi's assassination.
The friendship soured when the Bofors deal allegations surfaced against the Congress government and Amitabh Bachchan, then the MP of Allahabad, resigned after his role was alleged.
Though he was given a clean chit, the actor was seen to distance himself from the Gandhis.
After Rajiv Gandhi's assassination in 1991, the rift widened.
Political differences also cropped up between the families when Amitabh Bachchan's wife, actor Jaya Bachchan, opted for the Samajwadi Party. Amitabh Bachchan was also seen to have grown closer to the BJP; he is the brand ambassador of tourism in Gujarat, PM Modi's home state.
The last round of voting for the Lok Sabha election will take place on Sunday. The results will be declared on May 23.