[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Actor posts a video on Twitter saying “I am not a fool to give back my National Awards” but adds he’s disturbed, hurt and afraid by the PM’s silence
Two days after he lashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Yogi Adityanath, calling the latter a “better actor” than himself and saying that he felt like giving all of his five national awards to the Uttar Pradesh chief minister, actor Prakash Raj, on Tuesday, clarified that he had no intention to return his awards.
He, however, continued to slam the “chilling” silence of Modi on the recent murder of his friend, senior journalist Gauri Lankesh, and the subsequent abuse that was hurled at her on Twitter by people who are ‘followed’ by the Prime Minister on the micro-blogging website.[/vc_column_text][vc_raw_html]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[/vc_raw_html][vc_column_text]Raj’s clarification came against the huge attention that his remarks made at a state-level meet of the Left-leaning Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) in Bengaluru on Sunday drew from the media. The acclaimed actor, who was a close friend of Lankesh – editor of the Bengaluru-based tabloid Gauri Lankesh Patrike who was shot dead by yet unidentified assailants at her residence last month – was peeved at the fact that the slain journalist’s killers were still at large.
Asserting that “what is more disappointing is people celebrating her murder over social media and spreading hatred”, Raj had gone on to say: “Some of these people who celebrated her (Gauri’s) murder are followed by our Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) on Twitter. We have a PM who shuts his eyes to this,” Raj had said in an angry outburst.
He had then also hit out at UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath, saying: “When you look at the kind of statements he (Adityanath) makes, you don’t understand whether he’s a Chief Minister or a priest. He (Adityanath) is a better actor than me. I think I must give out all my five national awards to him.”
In his videographed clarification posted on Twitter on Tuesday, Raj says: “I am not a fool to give back my National Awards, which have been given to me for my body of work, and which I’m very proud of…”
He then went on to slam the Prime Minister and those on Twitter who “celebrated” the brutal murder of Gauri Lankesh, hurled abuses at her and claimed that she got what she deserved because she criticised the BJP or sympathized with naxal activists.
“We don’t know who has killed them (Gauri Lankesh and rationalists like MM Kalburgi), but we do know who is celebrating and I am pained, I am taken aback by the celebrations of an inhuman killing,” Raj said.
“If such people are being followed by the Prime Minister, and Prime Minister is not taking a stand on them and not commenting on them, as a citizen of this country, I am disturbed, hurt and afraid by the silence of the Prime Minister,” the actor said, while adding: “I am talking to my Prime Minister, and I say your silence is chilling and I have a right to say this.”[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]