What's your Gotra, BJP asks Rahul Gandhi

The Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday launched a scathing attack on Congress president Rahul Gandhi, asking him about his 'gotra'.

Speaking at a rally in Indore, the BJP spokesperson, Sambit Patra said, "If Rahul wears a 'janeu', what type of 'janeu' does he wear, what is his 'gotra'?"

Patra was commenting on Rahul Gandhi's ongoing visit to Ujjain where he went to the Mahakaleshwar Temple to offer prayers on Monday.

Janeu is a sacred thread worn by some devout Hindu men. Gotra, in Hinduism, refers to a clan or a descendant in an unbroken line from a common male ancestor.

The BJP's vitriolic against the Congress chief has come close on the heels of senior Congress leader, Shashi Tharoor equating Prime Minister Narendra Modi with a scorpion.

Speaking at the launch of his book 'The Paradoxical Prime Minister' at the Bengaluru Literature Festival, on Sunday, Tharoor had said, "There's an extraordinarily striking metaphor expressed by an unnamed RSS source to a journalist, who expressed their frustration to curb Modi -- 'Modi is like a scorpion sitting on a Shivling. You can't remove him with your hand and you cannot hit it with a 'chappal' (slipper) either."

Patra, on Monday, urged Rahul to axe Tharoor from the party, "The Congress has been bad-mouthing Lord Shiva, and the party chief Rahul should remove Shashi Tharoor from party ranks with immediate effect."

Last year in November, Rahul Gandhi had invoked Lord Shiva while responding to the BJP's criticism of his visits to the temple during the Gujarat assembly elections.

"Main Shiv ka bhakt hoon, sachaai mein believe karta hoon. BJP jo bhi bole main apni sachaai mein believe karta hu (I am a devotee of Shiv. The BJP may say anything, but I will remain honest.)," Gandhi had retorted.

The BJP, since then, has often criticised the Congress party chief for resorting to Lord Shiva as an election gimmick.

"For over 70 years since independence, the Congress has been playing 'bitter' politics in the name of secularism. They have been treating Hindus as second-grade citizens," Patra said in his latest tirade against the opposition Congress party.