National

We will wait for result of the probe, says Amitabh Bachchan

— Photo: Vivek Bendre

MAKING A POINT: Amitabh Bachchan addresses a press conference in Mumbai on Wednesday.

Mumbai: In the wake of the onslaught by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) after the party rejected actor Jaya Bachchan’s apology for her remark allegedly insulting to the Marathi people, Amitabh Bachchan clarified the Bachchan family’s stand on the matter.

Referring to Home Minister R.R. Patil’s statement that the State will conduct inquiry into Ms. Jaya Bachchan’s remark, Mr. Bachchan said the family would now wait for the result of the investigation.

“The Home Minister has given a statement that an investigation will be conducted. If we are guilty, then punish us. We have apologised. Beyond that, it is a law and order problem and the State administration has to take care of that,” he told reporters.

He reiterated his opinion voiced on his blog that if Ms. Bachchan had hurt the sentiments of the Marathi people, she should apologise. “Even if one single person is sentimentally hurt by what Jaya said, then we take it upon ourselves to apologise for that. None of what she said was with any kind of malice. It was a casual off-the-cuff remark,” he stated.

Mr. Bachchan’s statement comes in the wake of certain acts of vandalism indulged in out all over the State by the MNS. On Wednesday morning, MNS activists damaged a plasma screen at the PVR cinema theatre in Juhu, Mumbai.

Following Wednesday’s ruckus at the Mumbai theatre, Planman Motion Pictures, which produced the Amitabh Bachchan-starrer ‘The Last Lear,’ decided to cancel the premiere. However, the movie will be released as planned in the rest of the country.

At the promo of ‘Drona’ here on Saturday, Ms. Bachchan reportedly said: “Hum U.P. ke log hai, hume Hindi mein baat karni chahiye.” (We are from Uttar Pradesh and should speak in Hindi). The MNS and the Shiv Sena termed this an “insult to Marathi people.”

Special Correspondent reports:

Echoing the view of the MNS, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday said Ms. Bachchan’s remarks were inappropriate.

BJP national general secretary Gopinath Munde told journalists that while Hindi was the national language, there was no need to insult Marathi. Why did Ms. Bachchan have to specify she was going to speak in Hindi because she was from U.P.? She had insulted Marathi, he said.

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