Secularism for Congress is appeasement of terrorists: BJP

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday questioned the secular credentials of the Congress and accused it of appeasing terrorists and engaging in a loot of the nation through 'scores of scandals'.

"Secularism for Congress is appeasement of terrorists. Why is Afzal Guru not being hanged despite an order from the Supreme Court," BJP president Nitin Gadkari asked at a rally in Bhubaneswar.

It was because of its appeasement policy that the Congress did not take action against terrorists involved in the Parliament attack, he alleged.

All India Congress Committee general secretary Rahul Gandhi had told United States ambassador Timothy Roemer that growth of 'radicalised Hindu groups' which create religious tensions in India could pose a bigger threat to the country than activities of groups like Lashkar-e-Tayiba.

"What kind of secularism is this," he asked.

Terrorists and criminals have no religion or faith and they need to be booked under the provisions of law, he said.

Slamming Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for his statement 'every bone of my body is secular', Gadkari asked why the killers of Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Laxamananda Saraswati had not been nabbed even two and half years after his murder.

"Is it because Saraswati belonged to the Hindu community," he asked, ridiculing Patnaik.

The BJP, Gadkari said, did not believe in politics based on religion, caste and creed but was pursuing the politics of development.

"We want to make India a prosperous nation," he said.

"We also believe that politics is a means of socio-economic reforms," he said, adding that the Congress lost the Bihar assembly polls as the BJP had worked for the state's development.

The BJP president lambasted the United Progressive Alliance government at the Centre, accusing it of having a 'direct link' in the 2G spectrum scam and the Commonwealth Games scandal.

 "2010 is the year of scandals," he said, adding that the Bofors issue had exposed the 'real character' of Congress leaders.

"What is the Gandhi family's relationship with (Ottavio) Quattrocchi and his wife Maria," Gadkari asked, claiming that the couple had direct access to the Gandhi family.

He asked the people to give the BJP another chance and promised to put irrigation in the concurrent list instead of the state list.