Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh once again hit out at his successor Narendra Modi, accusing him of spreading “falsehood and canards” to score political points. Singh sought an apology from Modi for insinuating that the Congress leader colluded with Pakistan in the Gujarat polls.
“I sincerely hope that he will apologise to the nation for his ill thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies,” Singh said in a video message released to TV channels.
“Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of the Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable,” Singh said.
The second salvo by Singh in three days seems part of a Congress strategy to ensure that there is no let-up in its charge against Modi ahead of polls in 93 constituencies of Gujarat.
“I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” he said and demanded an apology from Modi.
Early in the day Singh and Modi had greeted each other at an event to pay homage to the victims of the 2001 Parliament attack.
The BJP hit back at Singh with party chief Amit Shah and senior leaders including Piyush Goel questioning the former Prime Minister’s track record when he headed the UPA Government.
“We are seeing a very angry Manmohan Singhji these days. We just want to ask him whether he was so angry when monumental loot and plunder was happening under his watchIJ The nation missed his anger then!” Shah tweeted.
Singh urged the Prime Minister to show “maturity and gravitas, as expected of the high office he holds, instead of concentrating his energy solely on scoring “erroneously conceived brownie points”.
Strongly rejecting the “innuendos and falsehoods” made by Modi, Singh said he did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar as alleged by Modi and nor was the Gujarat issue raised by anyone else present at the dinner.
“The discussion was confined to Indo-Pakistan relations. It is wrong and unfair to question nationalism of journalists, diplomats and public servants present at the dinner,” he said.
Singh also asserted that Modi “is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of a former Prime Minister and Army Chief,” and described it as sad and regrettable.
The Congress party needs no sermons on “nationalism” from a party and Prime Minister, whose compromised track record on fighting terrorism is well known, he added.
Pointing out that Modi had gone to Pakistan uninvited after the terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur, Singh said “let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic Air Base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan.”