BJP's Jay Panda slams Bollywood drug nexus, alleges 'undeniable links to ISI & underworld'

Following Jaya Bachchan's strong-worded defense for Bollywood in the Parliament which has sparked a fire, BJP leader Baijayant Jay Panda has stated that while the industry should be a prominent part of India's 'soft power' but it has been infiltrated in the past three decades. Panda alleged that the Bollywood has been made dependent on networks of underworld money and drugs with undeniable links to Pakistan's ISI. The BJP leader has claimed that things 'will change'. 

Jaya Bachchan's address in the Parliament on Tuesday sparked a row with several celebrities and politicians siding with her and criticizing her for staying mum on the prevailing drug nexus within the industry. Since the arrest of Rhea Chakraborty in alleged involvement in drug procurement, the Bollywood industry has come under a scanner.  

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Earlier on Tuesday, Baijayant Jay Panda said that he wasn’t expecting that she would not show support for those fighting against drug cartels. Taking to Twitter he said that the ISI-linked funding network that exists within Bollywood must be exposed. He hoped that senior industry figures would call out the deep-rooted dangers as it is a "matter for India's future."

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Jaya Bachchan in Parliament 

Samajwadi Party leader and a senior member of the Bollywood film fraternity Jaya Bachchan on Tuesday spoke in support of the Bollywood industry on the second day of the Monsoon session in Parliament. Calling people's comments 'shameful,' Jaya Bachchan opined that just because of a few problematic people, the name of the entire industry should not be tarnished. She also called out people who have made their names through the industry but call it 'a gutter' saying, "People in the entertainment industry are being flogged by social media. People who made their names in the industry have called it a gutter."

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"I completely disagree. I hope that the government tells such people not to use this kind of language. Just because there are some people, you can't tarnish the image of the entire industry. I am ashamed that yesterday one of our members in Lok Sabha, who is from the film industry, spoke against it. It is a shame," said Jaya Bachchan. This comes after BJP MP Ravi Kishan had a day earlier raised the drug links and nexus that has come to light alongside the probe into the death of Sushant Singh Rajput, which the NCB is probing with some alacrity.

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