MUMBAI, Dec 18: There is no kiss and make up to this controversy. A fresh round has begun on the Manohar Joshi-Majrooh Sultanpuri issue with the Chief Minister today wondering aloud on who could be the ``puppeteer'' of the noted poet. ``I would request him (Sultanpuri) to tell me who is the person forcing him to make these accusations (against me),'' said Joshi at a press meeting in his office at Nagpur today.Considering that Sultanpuri remained ``firm'' on his charges, despite his ``clarifications'', Joshi said he took a second look at the function in a video cassette obtained by him. ``After viewing it, I am convinced that I have not insulted Sultanpuri,'' he added.Narrating the entire sequence of the function, `Hridayesh Arts' at Vile Parle, Joshi recalled that he had released a book, Swarasha on the songs of Asha Bhosale. Following this, all actors and actresses, lyricists and music composers who were a part of Asha Bhosale's songs were felicitated by the Chief Minister. ``I personally got up from my seat and went to elderly poets like Pradeep and Datta Daijekar who were unable to get up, to felicitate them. Other actresses like Helen, Asha Parekh, poets like Majrooh Sultanpuri, Khayyam, Sudhir Phadke, Ramesh Deo, Seema Deo, Bhappi Lahiri were honoured by me as I stood at my chair. To say that I sat on my seat while honouring Sultanpuri is entirely wrong. This is evident in the cassette as well,'' said Joshi.He added that he was hurt by the poet's charge that he was ``insulted'' because he was a Muslim and spoke Urdu. ``I have always considered Sultanpuri a Maharashtrian,'' he added.
