JNU row: Rajnath Singh communalising issue, says Manish Tewari

Singh made a statement claiming that Hafiz Saeed backed the JNU protest

Congress today hit out at Home Minister Rajnath Singh over his claim that Hafiz Saeed backed the JNU protest, accusing him of "communalising" the issue and said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should ask his Pakistani counterpart to arrest the Lashkar chief for terror attacks in India.

"Rajnath communalising#JNUATROCITY at PULPIT of Pulp Patriotism. Tell PM's Biryani friend Nawaz Sharief Arrest Hafiz Saeed for terror attacks," senior Congress Leader Manish Tewari said in a tweet today.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh had yesterday claimed that the event on JNU campus in Delhi against the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru had received "support" from Saeed, a statement that sparked a political row with opposition parties asking him to provide evidence.

On Saturday, a post on an alleged "fake" account @Hafeez SaeedJUD - along with the name Hafeez Muhamad Saeed - invited JNU students to Pakistan, "to continue their Pro-Kashmiri, Anti-India Propaganda in our Universities".

"The incident (Afzal event) at JNU has received support from Hafiz Saeed. This is a truth that the nation needs to understand," Singh had said, adding, "what has happened is very unfortunate."

Later, a Home Ministry spokesperson said that Singh's statement was "based on the inputs available from different agencies."

Meanwhile, Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh sought to know from the government which agency had given inputs to the government on the issue.

"Would Home Minister pl clarify on which Agency's input did he make a statement of JNU's connection with Hafiz Saeed ?," Singh said in a tweet.