Sonia's veiled attack on BJP over Nehru

Congress President Sonia Gandhi moved to reclaim the legacy of Jawaharlal Nehru, criticising though not explicitly, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for trying to allegedly usurp and distort the ideals and politics he stood for.

Gandhi was speaking at an international conference organised by the Congress to celebrate 125 years of Nehru.

"Jawaharlal Nehru once remarked that wealth shouts, but knowledge whispers. That whisper about Nehru's life and work has weakened in recent years in our country drowned out by misrepresentation and distortion. Yet, the ideas that he promoted and the values for which he stood remain all the more relevant," Gandhi said, in the context of the BJP co-opting Nehru in its programmes.

"The Congress is trying to use Nehru's birth anniversary to play its own politics. Their pledge to unite the society and spread brotherhood is aimed at political gains and actually serves to divide the society," BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain had said three days ago.

Gandhi said Nehru stood out for his relentless crusade against injustice of all sorts and must be remembered for his commitment to secularism and democracy.