Congress' Divya Spandana slams PM Modi for taking Canadian Akshay Kumar aboard INS Sumitra

NEW DELHI: Congress' social media strategist Divya Spandana on Thursday slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for allegedly taking Canadian citizen Akshay Kumar with him on board Indian Navy warship Sumitra.

Her attack on Modi came a day after he accused late prime minister Rajiv Gandhi of using warship INS Viraat as a "personal taxi" for a family holiday.

Setting to rest speculation about his citizenship, actor Akshay Kumar had earlier this month said he holds a Canadian passport. Spandana also tagged a link to an article which raised questions as to why Bollywood was roped in for International Fleet Review at Visakhapatnam in 2016."Kumar even sailed in the presidential yacht INS Sumitra along with naval chiefs and other VVIPs," the report said.

Spandana also asked Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan to clear his stand on the INS Viraat issue, citing a report which quoted former Lakshadweep administrator Wajahat Habibullah denying the PM's claim and saying check with Bachchan in case of doubt.

She also cited former Navy chief Admiral (retd) L Ramdas's rejection of the PM's claim on INS Viraat and asked Modi as well as those who "lied and defamed" him and the army to apologise. "Or is it too much to expect from uncouth people?" she said.

Prime Minister Modi, at a rally here on Wednesday, accused the Gandhi family of using warship INS Viraat as its "personal taxi" for a holiday when Rajiv Gandhi was at the helm, launching a fresh attack on the late Congress leader days after throwing the "bhrashtachari no 1" barb at him. "Ever imagined that a premier warship of the Indian armed forces could be used as a taxi for a personal holiday? One dynasty did it," Modi had said.

The Navy was made to host the Gandhi family and Rajiv Gandhi's in-laws, and a helicopter was also deployed in their service, Modi had claimed, adding that when a family becomes supreme, the country's security is at stake. "INS Viraat was insulted by using it as a personal taxi. This happened when Rajiv Gandhi and his family was out for a 10-day vacation. "INS Viraat was deployed for securing our maritime boundary. But, it was diverted to take the Gandhi family which was out for a vacation," Modi had said. Congress leaders, including its president Rahul Gandhi and general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, have hit out at Modi for his barb at their father, who was India's prime minister between 1984-89.