Bhatia terms Cong manifesto 'strongly communal': BJP spokesperson

Lashing out at Congress for its proposal to ban Bajrang Dal in its manifesto, BJP national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia on Thursday termed the Congress manifesto as strongly communal and it has hurt the sentiments of the Hindus.

Bhatia told reporters here, "All over the state, people have decided to recite the Hanuman Chalisa and start visiting the Lord Hanuman temple. This is a peaceful measure to show resentment. But it is a strong message to the communal Congress."

He stressed that the reciting Hanuman Chalisa is not only a strong message to Congress but also to those who speak against the deity that Hindus revere. The Hindus will go to any extent democratically to show their resentment, he said.

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“When Congress realised that it has lost the elections in the state, it is giving completely unconstitutional, morally incorrect and politically unacceptable assurances to the people of Karnataka and from their manifesto, we can even see the venom dripping,” he taunted obliquely hinting at AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge’s 'venomous snake' remark on Prime Minister Narendra Modi last week.

He said that the banned PFI and the Congress are two sides of the same coin. “The Congress claims to be secular. When Siddaramaiah was in power, no action was taken against the PFI. It is now comparing the banned PFI to the Bajrang Dal. The same Congress now has an alliance with the SDPI. The Congress is engaged in a false and misleading campaign," he charged.

Bhatia said the people of Karnataka are seeing the progressive politics of the BJP and the communal, regressive politics of the Congress party. "BJP has a vision for the next 25 years whereas Congress doesn't even have a vision for the next 25 days,” he slammed.