Roopa Ganguly apologises for jhalmuri remark

KOLKATA: Soon after Union minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that she would look into the controversy raised after actress turned BJP leader Roopa Ganguly���s comment, the actress apologized for her comments on Saturday. Party on Sunday sent Sitharaman to take a stock of the situation after Ganguly criticized Union minister of state Babul Supriyo���s ���jhalmuri diplomacy��� with the chief minister Mamata Banerjee.
Sitharaman, who has recently been designated to look after West Bengal before 2016 Vidhan Sabha election, talked to the state BJP apart from the top leadership. She presided over hours-long meeting with the party���s top brass including BJP national secretary Siddharth Nath Singh and the party���s state president Rahul Sinha. She is scheduled to hold meetings with the district and ���mandal��� leadership of the party on Monday. When asked about the controversy she said, ���Let me talk to the party members first���.
When asked about this issue post Nirmala���s comment, Roopa said, ���If I have hurt Babul personally, I am really sorry. I did not want to hurt him. I will abide by all the instructions given to me by the party leaders. I have joined politics because I have listened to my heart. I don���t think I can change myself so easily.��� Ganguly, who was in Odisha to attend a literary meet, said that she was driven by emotion after going through the ordeal of a BJP worker in Santoshpur who was tortured by TMC supporters.
Actress turned BJP leader Roopa on Saturday had hit out at Babul Supriyo over his bonhomie with the Trinamool Congress. Terming his attempt as ���jhalmuri diplomacy���, she said that Supriyo should not forget pangs of the BJP workers. The rift spiked further on Sunday after another actor turned politician Joy Banerjee commented that BJP workers are feeling aggrieved over the bonhomie as they are under attack. ���I was not instigated by anybody to make these comments. If you call it foolishness, it is my foolishness. But I meant what I said.���
Earlier on Sunday, Babul Supriyo had said that he is aware of his actions and knows how to strike a balance. ���I have had a word with Nirmalaji. She said she will definitely look into it. There is always a space for discussion in a party. But there is need for maintaining discipline and decorum in the party too,��� he said.
Sitharaman, who held a meeting with the state BJP leadership at the party headquarter in Kolkata till late at night did not comment while she entered. ���Let me talk to the party members first. I cannot comment on anything,��� she said.
Earlier during the day Siddharth Nath Singh said that while Centre-State relation is a different issue in a democracy, it doesn't absolve TMC of the terror that they have unleashed on our BJP workers throughout the state. ���Our ideology and TMC's ideology are different and there can be no compromise with them,��� he said.
Meanwhile, Roopa, who described Babul as a close friend, said, ���It is only Babul whom we all can request to look into why the state administration is after the lives of non-TMC people. Since Babul is a dear friend, I could take his name. He is the direct connection between Bengal BJP and centre,��� she said. ���I could have asked him this question in private. But I raised it publicly because the common people of Bengal want answers to this. I am not here to correct him. All I am saying is that besides what he has said, he should also mention that he is with the local BJP workers. He said that in an interview to the electronic media. So, my job is done,��� Ganguly added.