BJP chief Amit Shah says he did not speak to Khaleda

"Why should someone fake a report on a call that was never made?" asks BJP chief Amit Shah, a master strategist but one who loves to play low profile to his boss Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"Are bhai maine to unhe call nahin kiya, yeh sab bakwas khabar kyon chapte hain?" (I never called her [Khaleda Zia] but why should these baseless reports be carried).

When asked why would a responsible political party in the neighbouring country make a claim about his call if that never happened, Shah seemed upset.

"Maine dusre Bangladesh media ko bhi yehi bola hain, bat karenge to kyon deny karenge par agar nahi kiya hai to khabar nahin ana chaiye," is what he said.

Roughly translated this would read: "I have told other Bangladesh media as well that if I had made the call, why would I deny, but if I have not spoken or made the call, why should such stories be floated."

And then he was keen to end this issue by reverting to West Bengal and checking on the political scene. He was keen to figure out if West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is finally going to Bangladesh.

BJP circles said Shah was initially unwilling to be drawn into the controversy but the Indian High Commission had insisted to their bosses in Delhi that the BJP as a party should clarify its stand to spare them any embarrassment.

The controversy started with Khaleda Zia's spokesperson Maruf Kamal Khan not only claiming but later insisting that Shah had called Khaleda to enquire about her health and BNP leader Ruhul Kabir Rizvi going a step further to claim that he had indeed condemned her confinement.

Two US Congressmen have come out with similar angry denials after reports floated that they had condemned Khaleda's 'confinement' and the government crackdown on the blockade.

The UK-based IB Times had said that a senior aide of Khaleda's son Tarique Rahman had sent them the statement about the US Congressmen's purported views on Bangladesh politics.