Does Congress agrees with MK's insulting remarks on Rama : BJP

New Delhi, Sept 18 (UNI) Alleging that there was a virtual civil war within the UPA over the Ramsethu issue, the BJP today asked the Congress to clarify if it agreed with the derogatory and insulting remarks of DMK chief and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi about Lord Rama.

BJP Spokesman Prakash Javadekar said that Mr Karunanidhi, unlike the UPA affidavit, had not questioned the existence of the deity but had sought to know ''which engineering college had accorded him the degree.'' ''The BJP wants the Congress to clarify if it approved or disapproved of the stand of Mr Karunanidhi,'' he said.

Stressing the BJP was not against the project, he said it sought a new realignment that will not destroy Ramsethu, a heritage site.

''This way development will not come in the way of faith and progress,'' Mr Javadekar said, adding the government should open its eyes to the ''alarm bells of the environmentalists who were foreseeing an ecological and a fiscal disaster if the bridge is to be breached.'' ''The criticism of Union Culture Minister Ambika Soni by Congress' Jairam Ramesh and R K Dhawan proved the differences within the UPA which is an unnatural and disparate combination of political forces,'' he said, and also alluded to the verbal spat between Science and Technology Minister Kapil Sibal and the Left parties on the Indo-US nuclear deal.

''India and its aam admis are the victims of this unfortunate civil war among the ruling alliance,'' the BJP spokesman said.

He said the UPA allies were also distancing themselves from the ''scandalous'' decision of Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar to import wheat at high cost, denying even a fair return for the wheat procured domestically from the Indian farmers. ''While the government was grudgingly paid Rs 850 a quintal for the India wheat, it did not hesitatate paying Rs 1,600 for the imported foodgrain,'' he said.

UNI