Must resist government's sectarian tendencies: Sonia Gandhi

The Congress will resist the "authoritarian and sectarian" tendencies of the government and attack it over incidents of communal violence, party chief Sonia Gandhi said Wednesday.

"It is our task to play the role of a vigilant opposition, to stand up for the values and policies of the Indian National Congress (INC), and to resist the authoritarian and sectarian tendencies of the new government as it tries to get its way in parliament," Gandhi said at the Congress Parliamentary Party meet here.

She added that the Congress will fight with full might to revive itself, and attack the government over incidents of communal violence.

Repeating her stand on communal violence having increased since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power, Gandhi added: "The moment they (BJP) betray the ideals on which this nation was built, the moment they pursue the politics of division and hatred, the moment they try to behave dictatorially inside or outside this temple of Indian democracy - the moment they do any of these things, we will stand up and fight them."

Gandhi also said that apart from communal violence, there have been other subtle but "pernicious signals of intolerance".

She said the BJP had nothing new to offer to the country.

"They attacked us without principles and they are now governing us without policies. Well, they are welcome to steal our ideas. They are welcome to borrow our programmes. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery," she said.

Adding that the Congress has been reduced to an all time low in the Lok Sabha, Gandhi said: "It has been a challenging time for us...the process of rebuilding and restoring the confidence of the public in the Congress party has begun."

Criticising the government on the union budget, price rise and violence against women, she said that the motto of government "minimum government, maximum governance" has changed to "minimum governance to protect the aam aadmi, maximum government to amass power in the hands of the BJP".