BJP is still an untouchable: Modi

The BJP, with whom political parties were reluctant to tie up a couple of decades ago, is still considered a political untouchable because of "created perception" against it, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday.

Addressing his party workers on his first visit to his constituency Varanasi after elections, the prime minister said that BJP has been ruling for a long time but "our nature is not divisive".

"Baba Ambedkar and Mahatma Gandhi spent all their lives fighting for eradicating untouchability. But unfortunately, political untouchability is increasing with each passing day. BJP workers have regularly been killed on the one hand and BJP is considered untouchable.

"We have been ruling for a long time but our nature is not divisive. A perception has been created which is still that we are untouchable even today," he said.

Citing an example of his days as Gujarat chief minister, Modi said that when the state government took the help Bollywood to promote state tourism, people raised questions due to this perception of untouchability.

"They asked as to how they (Bollywood) could work for Gujarat," he said appealing to rivals to "shun this perception".