By IANS,
New Delhi : The National Democratic Alliance’s (NDA) prime ministerial candidate L.K. Advani Tuesday lashed out at the Congress party, saying it had not done justice to Dalit icon B.R. Ambedkar. The Congress termed the accusation “ridiculous”.
“The Congress did not do justice to Ambedkar. He could have been sent to the Lok Sabha but was defeated under a plan,” Advani said at a public rally here to mark Ambedkar’s birth anniversary.
“He was conferred the Bharat Ratna in 1990, and the Congress was not in power at the centre then. It was the government of V.P. Singh, which was formed with our support that conferred the honour. This shows what the attitude the Congress has towards the greatest Dalit leader. It has to be kept in mind,” he added.
Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi described Advani’s statements as “futile argument”.
Union minister Kapil Sibal accused Advani of distorting history.
“The problem with Advani is that he doesn’t have a sense of history. He distorts history,” Sibal said when asked for his reaction to Advani’s accusation.
Priyanaka Gandhi, daughter of Congress president Sonia Gandhi, said in Amethi: “It is a completely futile accusation.”
Ambedkar, the architect of the Indian constitution, was born April 14, 1891. He died Dec 6, 1956.