Sanjay Dutt caused his father great agony: Sanjay Nirupam

Mumbai, April 2 (IANS) Senior Maharashtra Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam Thursday hit back at Bollywood actor and newly-appointed Samajwadi Party general secretary Sanjay Dutt for criticizing him and holding him 'responsible' for his father Sunil Dutt's death.

Responding to the allegations made by Dutt at his first press conference after taking over as general secretary of Samajwadi Party, Nirupam, the Congress candidate from Mumbai North, said that the late Sunil Dutt was deeply aggrieved by his only son's wayward behaviour and his addiction to drugs.

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'It was only because of Sanjay that the legendary Sunil Dutt had to go and sit for hours at the feet of Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray. I have personally witnessed his agony,' said Nirupam, a former Shiv Sena Rajya Sabha member who joined the Congress a few years ago.

Speaking to the media in the capital Thursday morning, Dutt had said that his father was unhappy with Nirupam's entry into the Congress.

Sanjay said that his father had publicly opposed Nirupam's entry into the party since the latter had viciously criticized him and other senior Congress leaders when he (Nirupam) was with the Shiv Sena for almost 10 years.

Sanjay claimed that since his father had a weak heart he was disturbed by these developments and died later, indirectly holding Nirupam responsible for his death.

In a sharp retort, Nirupam said that if Sunil Dutt's heart was so weak he would have collapsed and died long ago because of his son's behaviour, so it was not correct to blame him (Nirupam).

Claiming that Sanjay Dutt was merely mouthing the words of 'a particular Samajwadi Party leader', Nirupam said that it would be better if the actor steered clear of that leader who was responsible for 'breaking up many families and creating rifts among the best of friends'.

However, Nirupam did not name the particular Samajwadi Party leader.

Nirupam also urged Sanjay to keep his father out of this politicking since he was 'a great and revered leader' in his own right, both in political and public circles.