Polanski demonisation has turned me away from left-wing: Carla Bruni

London, Feb 1 (ANI): French First Lady Carla Bruni has admitted that her support for two high-profile men linked with underage sex crimes made her abandon her links with the Socialist Party.

She said she was disgusted by the way left-wing commentators had demonised film director Roman Polanski and arts minister Frederic Mitterand.

She criticised many of the socialist politicians who attacked the pair and said they sounded like France's racist National Front party.

"I don't really feel left-wing anymore. There were certain facts, certain commentaries, notably following the Polanski-Mitterand affair," the Daily Mail quoted her as telling Le Parisien newspaper.

"I heard responsible socialists saying the same thing as the National Front. It was really shocking," said the 43-year-old.

In 2010 film director Roman Polanski narrowly avoided deportation to the U.S. to face trial for raping a 13-year-old girl in the 1970s and close friends like Bruni stood by him.

She also supported Frederic Mitterand, nephew of the former socialist President Francois Mitterand, when he admitted sleeping with young boys during sex tourism holidays in Thailand. (ANI)