Congress leader Manish Tewari on Sunday lashed out at BJP President Amit Shah for saying that if communal tension continues in Uttar Pradesh, the BJP will form the next government in the State. Tewari said the Election Commission should disqualify the BJP on grounds of communalising the country’s political process.

“If this is the fundamental idea of BJP in order to get electoral advantage, the Election Commission and courts must take suo moto advantage. It makes out a clear case for the disqualification of the Bharatiya Janata Party on grounds of politicisation, on grounds of communalising the political processes,” said Tewari.

India TV on Sunday issued a clarification stating that Shah had clearly told the channel that his party never tries to win elections by taking recourse to communal tensions. It quoted Shah as having said in Rajat Sharma’s Aap Ki Adalat programme that BJP garners votes on the basis of its policies and programmes.

Shah was also quoted as saying Assembly elections are due in Maharashtra and Haryana but there is no communal tension in these States. On the other hand, in UP there is communal tension because the SP is adopting a one-sided approach. If the BJP comes to power in UP, it will be because of the wrong policies of SP, the party president said.

NCP leader Majid Memon said Shah should not make such claims as the UP polls are far off. “Amit Shah is the chief of ruling party and, therefore, he should choose his statements carefully. The comment — that if riots persist we will claim power – this is a dangerous statement and we condemn it,” he said.

CPI leader Atul Kumar Anjan also condemned Shah’s statements. “BJP chief Amit Shah’s comment that if communal riots continue in Uttar Pradesh, they will be able to form government there is a clear indication that BJP is trying to have alliance with Bahujan Samaj Party and other parties to form government. They have started their operation UP,” he said. Anjan further said that the BJP cannot sit peacefully until they claim power in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

RJD leader Manoj Jha said the BJP is not only going against the Constitution but is also resorting to criminal means to gain power. “What is your idea of politics? Is your idea of politics to kill people? To create a situation whereby thousands of people lose their lives? And what you get, you form the government,” said Jha.

Meanwhile, accusing the Trinamool Congress of being involved in the Saradha scam, Amit Shah on Sunday asserted the Central Government is not afraid of anybody in bringing the guilty to the books.

Saradha scam

Addressing a party rally here for the first time after taking over the party’s reins as its president, Shah launched a scathing attack on the Mamata Banerjee-led government over a host of issues, including illegal Bangladeshi immigrants.

“When a few thousand farmers lost their land in Singur and Nandigram, Didi (Banerjee) had fasted for days. But now that 17 lakh poor people have lost their deposits to the Saradha scam, why don’t you now feel like fasting?”

“You are not fasting because it’s your cronies who are involved in the scam,” said Shah.

Shah’s comments come at a time when the CBI has interrogated several high-profile names and has again taken the custody of suspended Trinamool MP Kunal Ghosh.