By involving Aamir Khan in Make In India, Modi sent a message to his party men to stop targeting him |
The BJP government in Maharashtra has roped in Bollywood actor Aamir Khan to promote a flagship programme to check farmers' suicide in the state.
The decision follows PM Modi's surprise invite to Aamir Khan, for Make In India's official dinner, in Mumbai on February 13.
CM Devendra Fadnavis is likely to make a formal announcement on Jalyukt Shivar Abhiyan, a rural programme to address water scarcity in 5,000 villages.
Fadnavis is also likely to talk about the actor's role in promoting efficient water management practices in farming.
The Hindu quoted Aamir Khan saying he had been in touch with the Maharashtra government on the project for over a year. Fadnavis may have decided to move ahead to rope in the actor after the signal from Modi to stop targeting Aamir Khan.
Besides attending the Make In India dinner, Aamir Khan was also scheduled to recite a poem on peace at a cultural show, which was called off after fire broke out on stage.
After Aamir Khan made his controversial remark on intolerance, he had become a pariah for the ruling establishment. He had said that due to rising intolerance, his wife Kiran had thought of moving out of the country to raise their son Azad.
A backlash quickly followed and he was removed as brand ambassador for Incredible India. The storm was so severe e-commerce firm Snap Deal pulled out his advertisements and decided not to renew him as its brand ambassador.
Taking dig at Aamir Khan became a favourite past-time for BJP supporters.
Two weeks ago, Union Minister Venkiah Naidu said that he was personally hurt by Aamir Khan's remarks.
But by involving Aamir Khan in Make In India, Modi sent a message to his party men to stop invoking the intolerance controversy.
Modi has stepped in the past as well to rein in his party men. After the Hyderabad University student Rohit Vemula committed suicide, Hyderabad BJP members and even senior party leaders had attacked him as an anti national.
They backed off only after Modi mourned Rohit Vemula's death as a loss to the country.