Congress leaders Milind Deora and Sanjay Nirupam on Thursday asked Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut to withdraw his ‘ill-informed’ remarks that former prime minister Indira Gandhi met underworld don Karim Lala.
Mr. Raut, whose party is a part of the ruling alliance with the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) in Maharashtra, claimed that Indira Gandhi met Karim Lala in Mumbai.
Karim Lala was one of the three top underworld dons of Mumbai for over two decades, from the sixties to the early eighties and the other two being Mastan Mirza alias Haji Mastan and Varadarajan Mudaliar.
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“Indira ji was a true patriot who never compromised on India’s national security,” Mr. Deora said in a tweet.
Mr. Deora also said that politicians should refrain from distorting legacies of deceased Prime Ministers.
Former Mumbai Congress chief Sanjay Nirupam said that Mr. Raut will repent if he continues a false campaign against Ms. Gandhi.
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Noting that Mr. Raut often shares poetry of others, Mr. Nirupam said that it will be better if the Shiv Sena leader focuses on entertaining Maharashtra with such poetic stuff.
“He should withdraw the statement he gave about Indiraji yesterday,” Mr. Nirupam tweeted.
During an interview to the Lokmat media group at its award function in Pune, Mr. Raut claimed, “When (underworld don) Haji Mastan came to Mantralaya, the entire secretariat would come down to see him. Indira Gandhi used to meet Karim Lala in Pydhonie (in south Mumbai).”