Congress’ Kerala unit urged actor Preity Zinta to present proof to refute reports that she “gave her social media accounts to the BJP” to get a Rs 18 crore loan written of, while also asking her to raise her voice for depositors who lost money.

In a post on X, the Congress’s Kerala unit said “depositors are on the streets for their money” after the Reserve Bank of India dissolved the New India Co-operative Bank’s board on February 15 amid reports of financial irregularities. Their post referred to a report about a Rs 18 crore loan to Preity Zinta and others being written off by the bank.

The actor was quick to call out the X post as “vile gossip” and “clickbait”, adding that she had fully paid back the loan a decade ago.

Good to know you’re managing your own account, unlike other celebs who have handed theirs over to the notorious IT cell.

Thanks for the clarification, @realpreityzinta regarding your loan position. We are glad to accept mistakes if we have made any.

We shared the news as… https://t.co/4aouqLaWue

— Congress Kerala (@INCKerala) February 25, 2025

In further development in the exchange between the party and the actor, the party asked her for proof that she has paid off the loan. “We are standing with the depositors who lost their savings,” the party’s X post mentioned.

Elaborating on the matter, the party said that media outlets claimed that former employees of the bank had first warned the RBI in 2020 about ongoing corrupt practices, which also included her Ms Zinta’s name.

Ms Zinta also hit out at Moneylife founder Sucheta Dalal, saying she was done “being a bigger person”. “So much misinformation going around but thank god for social media and thank god for X ! All through my career I have seen so many so respected journalists get so many stories completely wrong & never have the decency to correct the story or apologise. I have also gone to court and spent a tonne of money fighting cases that go on & on & on. I think it’s time we start holding them responsible right here so there is some accountability in the future. I’m definitely going to start naming all these journalists that write articles without following up or investigating the stories,” she wrote.

“If you don’t value my reputation then sorry I don’t value yours @suchetadalal Next time pls call me and find out if the story is true or not before mentioning my name. Just like you, I have spent years working hard and building a reputation so if you don’t care about mine I don’t care about yours. I’m done being a bigger person. This ends here,” she added.