BJP pursuing divisive agenda to continue rule like East India Company: Cong

Slamming Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "party for Muslim men" remarks against it, the Congress today dubbed the BJP as the "new version of East India Company" that was trying to sow seeds of hatred and division in the country to continue its rule like the British coloniser.

The opposition party also vehemently refuted reports that claimed Rahul Gandhi had told a meeting of Muslim intellectuals that Congress is a "party for Muslims".

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala alleged that the Prime Minister was using the "bogey of minority" to evade issues related to governance as he has "failed on all fronts".

"The Prime Minister wants to skirt issues of governance and that is why East India Company's new version is the Bharatiya Janata Party. Divide and rule was the ideology of East India company then and it is the same ideology followed by the BJP now. Whereas, Congress party belongs to people of every religion," he told reporters.

Surjewala said the Congress will defeat the "divisive" agenda of the Modi government.

"The Congress party shall continue to point out that Modi ji uses the bogey of minority to divide this country just like East India Company did.

"So, Modi ji your East India Company will not succeed and will wither away just like the Indian National Congress fought and decimated the East India Company of Britishers. We will, with common resolve and dedication and with interest of all Indians in mind, take on the might of the divisive agenda of your government," he said.

The Congress leader denied media reports that quoted a party leader as saying that Rahul Gandhi had told a meeting that Congress is a "party for Muslims".

Congress minority department head Nadeem Javed, who was quoted by an Urdu daily, also denied having said so and claimed that he was being "misquoted".

Surjewala said the particular newspaper or its representative was not present in the meeting of Muslim intellectuals with Gandhi last week