Calling Bharatiya Janata Party MP Pragya Thakur a "terrorist", Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said her remarks were the heart and soul of the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and it cannot be hidden.
Thakur created a controversy on Wednesday with her remark in the Lower House of Parliament during Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam member A Raja's narration of a statement by Nathuram Godse before a court on why he killed Mahatma Gandhi.
"What Pragya Thakur is saying is the heart of the BJP and the RSS. That is the centre of the BJP, that is the heart of the RSS. This cannot be hidden. It is their soul and it will come out somehow. No matter how much that they worship Gandhiji, this is their soul," he said addressing the media on the Parliament premises.
Gandhi's comments came at a time when the BJP is trying to distance itself from its erring MP, dropping her from the parliamentary panel on defence and also barring her from attending its parliamentary party meeting in the ongoing winter session.
It was after opposition members protested against Thakur's remarks, that Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said only the DMK leader's speech during the discussion on the Special Protection Group (Amendment) Bill will go on record.
Opposition parties attacked the government, particularly Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alleging that the PM's "inaction" against her proves his latent support to "Godse's sinister thought".
The opposition party said Thakur's remarks were a "perfect representation" of the BJP's "deplorable hate politics".
"We are very clear about it that we condemn her statement and we do not support this ideology," BJP working president JP Nadda said, distancing the party from Thakur's comment.
