The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has expelled a party worker for making public a video of the owner of Shree Annapoorna Hotel apologising to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
This action follows Tamil Nadu BJP Chief K. Annamalai's recent apology on behalf of the party for the incident. According to an India Today report, Singanallur Zonal President Satish was expelled for anti-party activities.
Two videos that went viral on social media have stirred a political storm in Tamil Nadu. In one video, the owner of the Annapoorna chain of restaurants, Srinivasan, requested a simplified tax regime during an interaction with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman at an event in Coimbatore. The video was widely circulated on social media, with users ridiculing the finance minister.
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In response, another video emerged showing the restaurant owner apologising to the minister for his comments on GST. This second video further fueled controversy, with opposition parties alleging that Srinivasan was forced into making the apology by the BJP.
After facing backlash on social media, BJP state chief K. Annamalai issued an apology for the incident.
In a social media post on Friday, K. Annamalai apologised, saying, "I sincerely apologise for the actions of our functionaries who shared a private conversation between a respected business owner and our Hon. FM."
Expressing regret over the incident, he said, "I spoke with Thiru Srinivasan Avl, the esteemed owner of the Annapoorna chain of restaurants, to express regret for this unintended breach of privacy."
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launched a scathing attack against FM Sitharaman over the incident.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Rahul said, "When the owner of a small business, like Annapoorna restaurant in Coimbatore, asks our public servants for a simplified GST regime, his request is met with arrogance and outright disrespect. Yet, when a billionaire friend seeks to bend the rules, change the laws, or acquire national assets, Modi Ji rolls out the red carpet."
