Actor Preity Zinta on Tuesday dismissed as “vile gossip” a claim by the Congress’ Kerala unit that she had handed over her social media accounts to the Bharatiya Janata Party in exchange for an Rs 18 crore loan waiver.The Congress’ Kerala unit responded, saying it had only shared media reports but was willing to accept any errors if proven wrong.The controversy stems from the Reserve Bank of India’s decision on February 15 to dissolve the board of New India Co-operative Bank amid reports of financial irregularities.On Monday, the Congress Kerala’s X account posted a news article alleging that Zinta had transferred control of her social media accounts to the BJP in return for an ₹18 crore loan write-off, while depositors were left stranded following the bank’s collapse.”She gave her social media accounts to BJP and got 18 Cr written off and the bank collapsed last week. Depositors are on the streets for their money,” the party wrote, sharing a screenshot of a news report.This prompted Zinta to hit back on Tuesday morning, slamming the political party for spreading fake news. “No, I operate my social media accounts myself and shame on you for promoting FAKE NEWS! No one wrote off anything or any loan for me,” she wrote in response to the post.”I’m shocked that a political party or their representative is promoting fake news & indulging in vile gossip and click baits using my name & images. For the record, a loan was taken and FULLY PAID BACK – over 10 years ago. Hope this clarifies and helps so there are no misunderstandings in the future,” she continued.The actor also blasted journalists for allegedly spreading fake news and called for accountability.The Congress Kerala posted a clarification after Zinta’s statement, saying it was good to know that she was operating her social media accounts unlike other celebrities who have handed theirs to “the IT cell.””Thanks for the clarification, @realpreityzinta regarding your loan position. We are glad to accept mistakes if we have made any. We shared the news as reported by media outlets.”According to media outlets which reported this story, ex-employees of New India Cooperative Bank had warned the RBI in a letter they wrote in January 2020 about the corrupt practices that was going on in the bank.In that report, your name along with many others were mentioned.”We are standing with the depositors who lost their savings. If the reports are wrong, we request you to clear the air with proof once for all and raise your voice in their interest too,” the post read.(With additional inputs from PTI)
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