It was slip of tongue: Shatrughan Sinha clarifies his statement on Jinnah

Patna: Congress leader Shatrughan Sinha on Saturday took a U-turn on his Muhammad Ali Jinnah statement, saying that the remark was a "slip of tongue" from his side.

Speaking to ANI, Sinha said he wanted to take Maulana Azad's name but instead, uttered the name of Pakistan founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah.

The actor-turned-politician's clarification came after he courted controversy for saying that "from Mahatma Gandhi to Muhammad Ali Jinnah, all are part of Congress Parivar."

"Whatever I said yesterday was slip of tongue. I wanted to say Maulana Azad but uttered Muhammad Ali Jinnah," he claimed.

Sinha, who recently left BJP and joined Congress, lauded Muhammad Ali Jinnah along with Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Patel, and Jawaharlal Nehru, saying they all had a role to play for India's independence.

"Ye Congress parivar Mahatma Gandhi se leke, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel se leke, Muhammad Ali Jinnah se leke, Jawaharlal Nehru se leke, swargiya Indira Gandhi se leke, Rajiv Gandhi se leke aur Rahul Gandhi se leke… inki party hai jinka desh ke vikas me, desh ki tarakki me, desh ki azadi me sabse mehatvapurna aur sabse bada yogdaan hua, isliye hum yaha aye (Congress family from Mahatma Gandhi to Sardar Patel to Muhammad Ali Jinnah to Jawaharlal Nehru... It is their party.

They had the most important role in development and freedom of the country. This is the reason why I have come here (in Congress)," Sinha said while addressing a rally here.

Sinha was in Madhya Pradesh to campaign for the state Chief Minister Kamal Nath's son Nakul Nath, who is contesting from the Chhindwara Lok Sabha parliamentary constituency against BJP's Nathan Shah.

Both Kamal Nath and his son were present at the event.

Meanwhile, Sinha will be contesting the ongoing polls from Bihar's Patna Sahib constituency against BJP's Ravi Shankar Prasad.