‘Successful, not accidental PM’: Shiv Sena leader praises Manmohan Singh

The Shiv Sena frequently disagrees on a range of issues with the BJP, its coalition partner both at the Centre, and Raut, a senior party leader and editor of Sena mouthpiece Saamana, has been in the forefront.

Ahead of the release of “The Accidental Prime Minister”, a film based on a book about Manmohan Singh’s prime ministerial tenure, BJP ally Shiv Sena’s leader Sanjay Raut said that he did not think the former prime minister deserved this title.

Shiv Sena leader and party mouthpiece Saamana editor Sanjay Raut has said Manmohan Singh was not an ‘accidental Prime Minister’ but a ‘successful Prime Minister’. (ANI/Twitter)

“If a prime minister governs the country for 10 years and the people respect him, I don’t see him as an accidental prime minister. After Narasimha Rao, if the country has got a successful prime minister, it is Manmohan Singh,” Raut told media on Friday, reported ANI.

Also watch: Anupam Kher says Manmohan Singh’s portrayal in Accidental Prime Minister will make naysayers proud

The Congress has downplayed the furore surrounding the film but lashed out at the Bharatiya Janata Party, whose official Twitter handle promptly tweeted the trailer which was released on December 27 and termed the film “riveting tale of how a family held the country to ransom for 10 years”. The film , which stars Anupam Kher as Manmohan Singh, releases January 11.

The Shiv Sena has frequently expressed its disagreement on a range of issues with the BJP, its coalition partner both at the Centre, Raut, a senior party leader and editor of Sena mouthpiece Saamana, has been in the forefront.

In a weekly column in November, Raut had criticised the Narendra Modi government for diverting corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds to build the Statue of Unity in Gujarat. In September, he had asked if the BJP’s Hindutva is dependent on what Congress president Rahul Gandhi eats and drinks . Raut, a Rajya Sabha member, had also questioned whether former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee died on August 16 or if his death was announced that day to ensure Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence day speech was not disrupted.