I'm not intimidated, politicians should focus on potholes: Shobhaa De

Kolkata: Celebrated author and journalist  Shobhaa De today said after the large scale protests by political parties which her latest tweet had evoked, she was happy to break her silence and was not feeling intimidated. “This (her tweet) is something which has to be strenuously defended and am happy to break the silence and I am not feeling intimidated. “I am also happy about the public support which I have received (for the tweet) and the Mumbai police has been very proactive in this regard”, De told reporters here on the sidelines of a FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO) event here. Yesterday, De had tweeted that Mumbai be separated from Maharashtra. This came on close heels of the proposed creation of Telengana state carved out of Andhra Pradesh. It had led to protests by political parties, including the Shiv Sena. [caption id=“attachment_1003457” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Shobhaa De. Image courtesy IBNLive[/caption] Later in the night she had clarified that her tweet was purely satirical and ‘much misconstrued’. “I suggest the political parties should concentrate on  the potholes of Mumbai. Mumbai is a city of potholes. This is not only for the Mumbaikars but also for those who visit the city,” she said. Asked to comment whether the move to create the  Telangana state was a case of political opportunism, De said “It is not that, but definitely the timing is suspect”. “It is worrisome that India will see very ugly elections. There is an attempt all over the country to kill and suppress the voice of dissent. We must resist that. All politicians should be watched and monitored by all and sundry and one should speak up fearlessly,” she said. To a query, she said divisive attempts by interest groups as seen in the demand for a number of states would make the country weak. “However, all demands for separate states should not be put in the same bracket”. PTI