The UnReal Times star columnist Ashwin has quit after calling the editors corrupt for not carrying a pro AAP article of his. Ashwin alleged that the editors have been bought by the corporate sector and have been pressurizing him to write only pro Modi unreal articles and it was difficult to continue under the circumstances. “I sent them a couple of satirical articles but they kept saying they weren’t funny enough. The last straw was when they told me to insert some lines about Kejriwal’s muffler. I feel these chaps are on Modi’s payrolls,” he noted.
The Unreal Times management has a different version however. Editor Karthik Laxman said that Ashwin did not quit but was fired for deteriorating performance. “Ashwin’s articles of late have been replete with typos and grammatical blunders. He’s also been behaving weirdly, saying Arvind Kejriwal reminds him of Mahatma Gandhi. We thought that was an interesting theme to develop for a satire article and encouraged him to write one. But what he wrote turned out to be an unabashed AAP eulogy. We feel Ashwin is angling for a Lok Sabha ticket from AAP and so felt it’s better he is fired so he can pursue a political career. We wish him all the best for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections,” Laxman said.
Ashwin lambasted The Unreal Times for insinuating that he was fired for incompetence. “I maintain that I quit and they did not fire me. But yes, now that I’m no longer a URT columnist, I will join AAP. Kejri sir was initially reluctant to take me in since my unreal articles are full of lies. But after I pointed him to the “it’s a work of fiction” disclaimer, he laughed heartily and initiated me into the AAP fold by placing an AAP topi over my head.”
However, Ashwin was later summarily expelled after he cracked a #YoKejriwalsoHonest joke under the AAP’s ‘zero tolerance for dissent’ policy. “Sucks man. These AAP chaps take themselves too seriously. I think I’ll rejoin URT. Anyway, they don’t pay so it’s no big deal,” a glum faced Ashwin said.
AAP leader Ashutosh retorted that Ashwin should have first read the AAP manifesto on cracking PJs before joining the AAP.