Thaindian News

New Delhi, May 18 (IANS) Dubbing Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi’s claims on Bhatta Parsaul as exaggeration, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Wednesday accused the Congress of kicking up “phobia”.

“Congress in the last decade has this policy, to kick up phobia, even if they have to tell lies, and make people believe it is a serious crisis,” party spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman told IANS.

Rahul Gandhi Monday met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with a delegation of farmers from Bhatta Parsaul in Greater Noida, the hub of violent agitation, and handed over pictures of ashes with bones, injured people and ransacked houses.

He also said the Uttar Pradesh government had committed rapes and other atrocities on local people.

“When there is wrong doing you have to speak, but not exaggerate, talking about gang rape and mass grave. Haven’t we heard all this in Gujarat? Now we are hearing this in UP,” she said.

Party spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain demanded a probe by a joint parliamentary committee.

“The issue should be probed through a joint parliamentary committee. The parliament is above all, so the parliament should probe it,” he said.

Alleging “match fixing” between Congress and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Hussain said the exaggerations made by Rahul Gandhi had made the agitation directionless.

“(Chief Minister) Mayawati and the Congress have done a match-fixing. If Mayawati believes Rahul has given a wrong statement, she should come out with a clarification,” he said.

“His statement is an attempt to make the whole agitation directionless”.

“When the BJP reached there (Bhatta Parsaul), there were no complaints of rape. If Rahul Gandhi knows some cases, he must get the case registered and see that justice is delivered to them,” he said.