Union minister Uma Bharti Wednesday accused senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh of speaking in favour of terrorism and terrorists "as he feels that doing so make Indian Muslims happy".
Singh has drawn severe flak from the BJP for his tweet, in which he termed the Pulwama terror attack a "durghatna" (accident).
"Congress always has doubts on the patriotism of Muslims. He (Singh) feels that if he speaks in favour of terrorism and terrorists, then Indian Muslims will become happy. Muslim votes always remains his target," the minister for drinking water and sanitation said.
When asked about some Congress ministers' demand to ban RSS shakhas in public places, she said, "Sangh workers have nationalist thinking and it (ban) won't affect them."
"Nath, Congress president (Rahul Gandhi), especially Digvijay Singh, must go to RSS shakhas so that their affection for terrorism will reduce. His (Singh's) love for the likes of Hafiz Saeed and Osama (Bin) Laden has not reduced even after he took a holy bath at the Kumbh and despite his Narmada Parikrama. It will only reduce if he goes to a Sangh shakha," she added.
She accused the Congress of taking political advantage of the "martyrdom" of Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi in the 1984 and 1991 general elections respectively.
"Congress should be ashamed of doing so," she said.
When asked on the Ram Janambhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute, she refused to comment saying the matter was pending with the Supreme Court.
"No comment on the Supreme Court," she said.
She said that just as a temple cannot be built in the Vatican and at Mecca, nothing else can be constructed in Ayodhya except a temple.
"Those who are talking about building a mosque there are trying to indulge in bloodshed. But we will not let that happen. We wish that the Ram temple issue is resolved," she said.
The former Madhya Pradesh CM also said the ambitious Ken-Betwa river linking project that was started during former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's tenure, can be implemented before the imposition of the model code of conduct for the Lok Sabha polls.
(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)