Manoj Bajpayee (File photo)
NEW DELHI: Actor and Padma Shri awardee Manoj Bajpayee on Thursday lashed out at the Rashtriya Janata Dal’s (RJD) IT cell for circulating a manipulated campaign clip that falsely featured him.The four-time National Award-winning actor took strong exception to the use of the clip, which was posted by the parody account of Tejashwi Yadav, who is a CM candidate for the opposition Mahagathbandhan.After the clip went viral, Bajpayee issued a stern public clarification. Quoting the post, he wrote: “I would like to publicly state that I have no association or allegiance with any political party. The video being circulated is a fake, patched-up edit of an ad I did for @PrimeVideoIN. I sincerely appeal to everyone sharing it to stop spreading such distorted content and urge people not to engage with or encourage such misleading content.” The post prompted RJD’s IT wing to delete the video, but not before it had already ignited a storm online.Hours after the actor issued a clarification, the BJP attacked the Tejashwi-led RJD for using the actor’s video without his consent.
“Shame on RJD ecosystem for circulating fake video of Actor Manoj Bajpayee for its campaign in Bihar! ” Rashtriya Jhoota Dal” knows it is losing Bihar, this is why it is using fake, edited videos in its campaign! Fake News, & Corruption, JungleRaj unites Congress and RJD!” national BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari wrote on X. Meanwhile, the RJD on Thursday inducted Bhojpuri superstar Khesari Lal Yadav and his wife Chanda Devi into the party. The actor’s formal plunge into politics marks a notable crossover from cinema to public life. Interestingly, Khesari Lal has also launched a devotional YouTube channel, signalling what many see as a personal shift toward spirituality even as he enters the political fray.BJP, on the other hand, has fielded folk singer Maithili Thakur from Alinagar in Darbhanga district. Maithili turned 25 recently. Her father Ramesh Thakur is also her guru and teaches music. She had recently met BJP state incharge Vinod Tawde and union minister Nityanand Rai.The high-voltage campaign is building up ahead of voting for the 18th Bihar assembly, which will take place in two phases on November 6 and 11 across 243 constituencies. Results will be declared on November 14.
