Janatal Dal (Secular) president and former Prime-Minister Deve Gowda H.D. Deve Gowda has taken a dig at the film made on the life of former prime-minister Manmohan Singh (his successor) by stating that he was also an ‘accidental prime-minister’.

Gowda, who headed an uneasy, Congress-backed coalition Govt. at the Centre for eleven months from 01.6.1996 to 21.4.1997 before his Govt. was brought down, was commenting on the upcoming Bollywood film ‘The Accidental Prime Minister’ starring veteran Bollywood actor Anupam Kher in the title role. Based on a novel of the same title by Sanjay Baru, the film is expected to hit the screens in a few days’ time (11th January).

Manmohan Singh headed the Congress-led UPA Govt. at the Centre for a decade from 2004-14. The film’s trailer, released some days back, drew a huge response from the audiences as well as politicians. Congress’ student wing has opposed the trailer stating that it had some objectionable dialogues. It has even threatened that it won’t allow the film’s screening in theatres unless the dialogues were deleted.

A Congress party spokesperson blamed the BJP of attempting to fish in troubled waters to tide over the recent Assembly poll reverses suffered by the party. “Such a wrong campaign can’t take away from the people their resentment about the Modi Govt.’s four-and-a-half misrule,” he said. Joining the issue, Gowda said that the film’s shoot shouldn’t have been allowed in the first place.

“I don’t know about Manmohan Singh being accidental Prime-Minister; but I know that I was also an accidental prime-minister for sure,” he said wondering how the film’s shoot was allowed to take place in the first place.