New Delhi, Nov 7 (IANS) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Sudhanshu Trivedi on Saturday launched a blistering attack on the Congress, accusing the party of pursuing appeasement politics and abandoning the ideals of Lord Ram and Mahatma Gandhi.

Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, Trivedi alleged that the Congress leadership had displayed double standards on issues of national security, religious sentiments and women's rights.

"The anti-Ram face of the Congress has once again been exposed. Sonia Gandhi sheds tears over the 1992 incident, but her compassion is never seen when it comes to terrorists and the killing of innocent people," Trivedi said.

Questioning Sonia Gandhi's reported emotional response to the events of December 6, 1992, Trivedi asked when and on which television channel she had watched the visuals of the incident. He argued that Indian television was not broadcasting the demolition live throughout the day and demanded clarification about the source of the footage that had reportedly moved her to tears.

The BJP leader also questioned what he described as the Congress's selective expression of sympathy. Referring to the Batla House encounter, he alleged that Sonia Gandhi had expressed concern for the accused but had not shown comparable emotion for security personnel who sacrificed their lives defending Parliament. He further questioned the party's response to the displacement of Kashmiri Hindus in 1990, post-1992 riots and alleged atrocities against Hindus and temples in Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Trivedi invoked the political legacy of the Nehru-Gandhi family, claiming that three generations of Congress leadership had visited Babur's tomb. He contrasted this with former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi's 1989 election campaign, which began from Ayodhya with an invocation of Lord Ram.

"In 1989, Rajiv Gandhi launched his election campaign from Ayodhya in the name of Lord Ram. However, today, Sonia Gandhi's politics revolves around issues such as the Babri Masjid, Batla House and Gaza," he remarked.

He further questioned whether Sonia Gandhi's sympathies were with Ram Janmabhoomi or the mosque, asking why a party that once spoke about Mahatma Gandhi's vision of Ram Rajya was now allegedly invoking Babur's legacy.

Raising another politically sensitive issue, Trivedi questioned the silence of Congress leaders Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Sonia Gandhi over serious allegations of sexual exploitation levelled against senior Congress leader Harak Singh Rawat.

"Why are Priyanka Gandhi, who gave the slogan 'Ladki Hoon, Lad Sakti Hoon', and Sonia Gandhi, who speaks about women's rights, silent on these serious allegations?" he asked.

He said the woman deserved justice and questioned why the Congress leadership had not publicly addressed demands for a CBI investigation and DNA testing.

"The Congress leadership's silence on the question of ensuring justice for the woman is extremely distressing and painful. It is a silence that rings in one's ears like an ear-shattering noise," Trivedi said.

The BJP spokesperson challenged the Congress to explain its positions on religious identity, national security and women's safety. He maintained that the party's contrasting statements and political positions had exposed what he described as its ideological contradictions.

--IANS

brt/dan