New Delhi: Manmohan Singh described BJP’s prime ministerial candidate LK Advani as an "opportunist" and said his only contribution to "national welfare" was his role in the demolition of the Babri mosque.
Asked to comment on Advani's repeated criticism of the Congress Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh shot back and said the only "prominent role" the BJP leader had played was in the 1992 razing of the Babri mosque in Ayodhya that triggered widespread Hindu-Muslim violence.
"What has he done to the contribution of national welfare?" the Prime Minister asked.
"When he was the home minister, the (terrorist) attack on Parliament took place," he said, adding that it led to a massive mobilisation of troops on the Pakistan border.
"Without getting any results, we rolled them back. Parliament was attacked, Red Fort was attacked (by terrorists), an Indian Airlines plane was hijacked and terrorists were rewarded (by releasing them). This is the record of Advani,” he said.
"He was the home minister who presided over the massacre (of innocents) in Gujarat. This country must reflect if he is fit to hold the post of prime minister,” he added.
Manmohan Singh went on to say that Advani, widely seen as a Hindu hardliner, "was opportunist enough when he went to Pakistan. There he suddenly discovered new virtues in Mohammed Ali Jinnah. When he came back, his party disowned him, his masters in the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh) and many of his colleagues (disowned him)".
"Is he a strong man or a weak man, let the records speak for themselves."
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