Senior JD-U leader KC Tyagi said personal attacks on Rahul Gandhi were harmful (File)

The Lok Janshakti Party (LIP) and the Janata Dal-United (JD-U) have urged the BJP leadership to stop making personal attacks on Congress President Rahul Gandhi, saying this was one reason why the BJP lost Assembly elections in the Hindi heartland.

The BJP was also advised by its allies in Bihar to keep the focus on the development agenda instead of the Ram temple and issues such as Lord Hanuman's caste.

Two days after the BJP was ousted from power in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, the JD-U of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and the LJP of Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan voiced their objection to the BJP's aggressive tone over issues not linked to development.

"The NDA's agenda is development. If the NDA will persist with issues like Ram temple and Lord Hanuman, people will be confused," LJP Member of Parliament Chirag Paswan, the son of Ram Vilas Paswan, said on Thursday.

Senior JD-U leader KC Tyagi said personal attacks on Rahul Gandhi by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the election campaign in assembly polls were objectionable. "The BJP has harmed itself because of this."

Mr Tyagi, General Secretary of JD-U, said the BJP only raised emotional issues during the polls and ignored matters related to farmers, employment, price rise and corruption.