She knew she was standing with 'Tukde gang': Smriti Irani on Deepika Padukone's JNU visit

Deepika Padukone's visit to Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) on Monday sparked off a major controversy and garnered reactions from all fronts. Now in a recent development, Union Minister Smriti Irani reacted on the actress' visit and said, "She knew she is standing with those people who said 'Bharat tere tukde honge'. It's her democratic right to stand with whoever she wants, she must be ok with whom she was standing — the ones who celebrated the killing of CRPF Jawans.

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At an event, Irani said, "It was not unexpected to us that she was going to stand with people who want the destruction of India. She sided with people who hit girls on their private parts with lathis. I can't deny her that right. I think we should decide which side you want to stand. Do you want to stand with people who wanted the destruction of India? Every time a CRPF jawan is killed, they celebrate. She made her political affiliation known in 2011 that she supports the Congress Party. If people are surprised by this, it is because they didn't know. There were a lot of admirers of hers who have just discovered her position. As far as Deepika goes, I rather know where she stands. Stand. Stand next to people who said, 'Bharat Tere Tukde Honge'."

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Deepika Padukone visits JNU

Deepika visited the Varsity in an apparent expression of solidarity with the students after the horrific attack. Dressed in a black sweater, the actor was seen along with groups of students and other protesters. While many have come in support of the actor for visiting JNU amidst the conflict, she has also drawn conflicting views on social media. Republic TV sources had claimed that her visit was a part of the film (Chhapaak) promotions. A few tweets by various media organizations, with Deepika and JNUSU President Aishe Gosh's pictures, were sourced to the PR firm ‘SPICE PR’ which have raised more questions amongst netizens. Former JNU Students' Union President Kanhaiya Kumar was present at that time and seen amid the sloganeering, though he claimed later to have not seen her.

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