Amar cautions Chiranjeevi

By J.R.PRASAD Hyderabad, Sept. 7: The Samajwadi Party general secretary, Mr Amar Singh, who is known for his political acumen cautioned political novice and actor-turned-politician Chiranjeevi that "politics was not a bed of roses." "Reel life is different from real life. Politics is murky. It is not a place for good people like Chiranjeevi. It is a very difficult path. We wish him all the success in his new endeavour," he said to mediapersons mediapersons in Hyderabad on Sunday. Apart from Mr Amar Singh, yesteryear actors Jaya Bachchan and Jayaprada also called on Chiranjeevi at the Praja Rajyam headquarters on Sunday evening. Though the SP leaders described their visit as "personal," they are believed to have taught all sorts of political lessons to the novice in politics during their meeting which lasted one hour. As soon as the meeting ended, leaders of both the parties briefed the mediapersons separately. While addressing the media at the PR office along with Jaya Bachchan and Jayaprada, Mr Amar Singh was cautious while broaching the subject of an alliance between the SP and the Praja Rajyam. However, he dropped enough hints on the possibility of the PR sailing with the SP by saying that, "it is our internal matter." When asked what was the message brought by Amitabh Bachchan’s wife to the PR spokesperson, Mr Parakala Prabhakar said, "She adviced Chiranjeevi to fight the elections alone as he has got a bigger clout among the people." Meanwhile, the PR spokespersons refused to answer queries on a future political alliance between the party and the SP. "We are here on a goodwill visit. No political discussions took place during the meeting. I am a fan of Chiranjeevi. And Chiranjeevi is very close to the Bachchan family. We came here to congratulate the actor on his political foray." When asked if the SP, which was moving closer to the Congress at the Centre, would not annoy the Congress by meeting Chiranjeevi, the SP leader replied that he was not in the Congress. "We supported the UPA government regarding the nuclear deal as it was beneficial for the country. Whether we join hands with the Congress in the UP elections or not, we won’t give a chance to the communal forces like BJP to come into power." Replying to a query on the possibility of a pre-poll alliance, Mr Amar Singh said: "I categorically told you that our visit is totally personal and a family affair. In fact, Amitabh Bachchan would have come along with us, had he not gone abroad. Mr Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya also wanted to come here. Probably, they will come next time." "During his London visit, Mr Amitabh happened to see the footage of the Tirupati meeting. He was moved by the public response and asked Ms Bachchan and SP leaders to wish Chiranjeevi well on his behalf," he said.