BJP: Congress silence over violence is shameful

Accusing the Congress of maintaining “shameful silence” over violence in Malda, West Bengal, and Fatehpur in UP, the BJP on Sunday condemned Mamata Banerjee-led TMC and Mulayam Singh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party for engaging in “vote-bank politics”. Referring to communal violence in Purnea in Bihar, the BJP also dared the Congress to speak up on these issues, alleging that the main Opposition party earlier tried to “malign” the image of the NDA government at the Centre on the issue of “so-called intolerance”.

Hitting out at Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, BJP national secretary Shrikant Sharma said the Congress leader was at the forefront of attacking the Modi government over state issues like Dadri lynching and the murder of rationalist M.M. Kalburgi in Karnataka but has been silent over the violence in Malda and frequent murders in Bihar.

“The silence of the Congress and Rahul Gandhi is shameful. The silence of all those who were attacking the Central government over the issues like Dadri lynching and Kalburgi murder is equally shameful...” Mr Sharma said.

We will appreciate if they have guts to comment on what happened in Malda and Fatehpur and also daily murders in Bihar where ‘jungle raj’ has returned,” Mr Sharma said.

The BJP leader accused both West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee and UP CM Akhilesh Yadav of being “trapped in vote bank politics and not taking action against goons.”