NEW DELHI: BJP president JP Nadda on Saturday launched a scathing attack on the Congress leadership, accusing them of indulging in “petty politics” over the creamation of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. In a strong statement, Nadda condemned Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge’s statements claiming that the Congress party, which failed to honour Singh during his lifetime, was now exploiting his legacy for political gain.
“It is indeed very unfortunate that former Congress president Rahul Gandhi and current president Mallikarjun Kharge are not refraining from doing politics even on the sad demise of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh,” Nadda remarked.
He alleged that the Congress had consistently disrespected Singh, citing the party’s actions during his tenure as prime minister. “This is the same Congress which tarnished the dignity of the post of PM by placing Sonia Gandhi as super PM above PM Manmohan Singh. Rahul Gandhi insulted PM Manmohan Singh by tearing the ordinance. And today the same Rahul Gandhi is doing politics,” he added.
Nadda’s remarks came after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi described the central government’s decision to conduct the cremation at Nigambodh Ghat, rather than at a designated memorial site, as a “grave insult” to Singh. In a post on X, Rahul Gandhi criticised the government for disrespecting the former PM and highlighted Singh’s legacy. The BJP, in turn, slammed Rahul’s comments as a “new low in India’s politics.”
Leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul, also criticised the deviation from tradition, arguing that Singh deserved a memorial to honour his contributions. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also backed Rahul, and said that the government should have looked “beyond politics”.
Broadening his criticism, Nadda accused the Gandhi family of consistently sidelining influential leaders from both within the Congress and beyond. “The Gandhi family has neither given respect to any big leader of the country nor done justice to them,” Nadda said, naming Sardar Patel, PV Narasimha Rao, and Pranab Mukherjee as examples of leaders who were allegedly neglected by the party.
Contrasting this with the BJP’s approach, Nadda highlighted the respect shown by the Modi government. “The government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given place for PM Manmohan Singh’s Samadhi and has also informed the family,” he noted, accusing Congress of spreading misinformation on the matter.
He also recalled Sonia Gandhi’s rejection of a proposal to build a memorial for PV Narasimha Rao at Rajghat, stating, “It was Prime Minister Narendra Modi who established a memorial for him in 2015.” On the death of Dr Pranab Mukherjee, Nadda added that “the Congress Working Committee did not even bother to call a condolence meeting.”