Votes or Box office: Sidharth Malhotra's tweet on Panchkula shows he is not different from politicians

Sidharth Malhotra put out a tweet hoping people saw his movie A Gentleman. This tweet at a time when Punjab and Haryana are burning is insensitive

Sidharth Malhotra’s tweet hoping people from Punjab, Haryana could watch his film A Gentleman, has been termed insensitive. The actor had put out the tweet before the big verdict on the Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh case came. The self-proclaimed Godman was found guilty in a rape case by a CBI court in Panchkula on August 25. The quantum of his punishment will be decided on August 28. Much before the verdict came out, Sidharth hoped for peace in the states, something all of us want. But the next words which followed were- “Hope you see our film A Gentleman”.

Now, Twitter users were quick to point out the insensitivity of this, called Sidharth the winner of film promotions, and slammed him. To do damage control, Sidharth said later in a tweet that he had made this statement before the verdict. But that does not change anything. For days now, news has been covered with reports of how followers of Dera Sacha Sauda Chief thronged Panchkula to lend support to him. Haryana and Punjab have been tensed for days now. Amid this, did Sidharth really think anyone would care about his film?

Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh (Courtesy: IANS)

A deeper look at this tweet and it boasts of a bigger problem. There are many similarities between Sidharth and the politicians who visited the Dera chief for votes. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had sought support from Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh before elections. With his ‘blessings’, ML Khattar won the Haryana Legislative Assembly election in 2014 and became the CM of the state. But this is not the only example. In 2007, the Dera started a political affairs wing (PAW) to advise its followers whom to vote in elections. In 2007, the Dera asked the followers to vote for Congress in Punjab polls, though the party lost later. In 2014, the sect supported BJP in the general elections. In October 2014,  Prime Minister Narendra Modi had praised the Dera chief in a rally.

Gurmeet Ram Rahim, violence, MSG baba

IANS

The Dera chief dabbling into vote bank and giving his opinion on politics is not new. This is probably one of the reasons why the ML Khattar run government failed to control violence which cost 31 lives. Once you seek benefits from a religious leader, keeping his followers at check after violence is not a cake walk for leaders.

While many of us have put the government under the scanner and called this a failure on its part, Sidharth Malhotra’s tweet doesn’t deserve a different treatment. When ministers care about votes, the actor too cared about Box Office. At the end,

Laagi Naa Choote Song, Jacqueline Fernadez Sidharth Malhotra in A Gentleman, inuth.com

Laagi Naa Choote Song, Jacqueline Fernadez Sidharth Malhotra in A Gentleman

it all comes down to numbers, be it votes or collection at ticket counters.

 

Also read: How Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh became a self-acclaimed saviour of the world using cinema as propaganda

Check out his tweet and the reactions which followed:

 

Also read: No more MSG films! Twitter flooded with jokes after Ram Rahim Singh found guilty in rape case

And here are the tweets which Sidharth wrote to do damage control:

After the verdict came out many Bollywood celebs took to Twitter to share their views on it. Check them out here:

 

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