New Delhi: In defence of former social welfare and women and child development minister and party colleague Sandeep Kumar, who was sacked after a sex tape involving the Aam Aadmi Party leader emerged, AAP spokesperson Ashutosh on Friday justified the act, saying it was consensual.
Ashutosh tried to defend Kumar saying, ‘sex is a part of our basic instincts’.
While giving his justification, the AAP leader wrote in his blog: “Indian history is full of examples of our leaders and heroes who had lived with their desires beyond social boundaries. Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru’s reported affairs with many female colleagues were juicy gossip but it didn’t spoil his political career. His relationship with Edwina Mountbatten is widely discussed. The entire world knew about it. Their affections continued till Pt. Nehru’s last breath. Was it a sin? History is also witness to the fact that top leaders of the Congress in 1910s were worried about Gandhiji’s relationship with Sarla Chaudhary, who was distantly related to Rabindra Nath Tagore. Gandhi Ji had confessed that Sarla was his spiritual wife. Kasturba Gandhi was very disturbed. C Rajagopalchari and other senior leaders of the party had to intervene. They persuaded, pressured, cajoled Gandhi-ji to leave Sarla. Gandhiji in his later days slept naked with his two nieces to experiment with celibacy. Pandit Nehru had told him not to do so as the country would rise against him but Gandhi-ji did not budge.”
The blog was posted on NDTV.
Besides Gandhi and Nehru, Ashutosh gave examples of ex-PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee, socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia, George Fernandes’s personal lives.
The AAP leader wrote: “Socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia used to say that every relationship between a man and a woman is right if it is not defined by coercion and manipulation. He had a lifelong partner and lived with her without marriage. His colleague George Fernandes was married to Laila Kabir, but this was never a problem for his friendship with Jaya Jaitley. Atal Bihari Vajpayee was not married in true RSS tradition but he said in parliament that he is a bachelor not celibate. He openly lived with his college friend and society did not object even once.”
“Chinese leader Mao Je Dong’s sexual activity was not confined to women. The young males who served as his attendants were invariably handsome and strong and one of their responsibilities was to administer a nightly massage as an additional aid to sleep,” Ashutosh further said.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday night sacked Sandeep Kumar as social welfare and women and child development minister over an alleged “sex video” involving him.