Sonia Gandhi calls Advani a slave of the RSS

Bidar (Karnataka), Apr 15 (ANI): Continuing her attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L K Advani, Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday termed him a "slave of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)".

Addressing an election rally here, Sonia Gandhi called Advani incompetent and a leader who couldn't take decisions on his own.

"It is Advani, who is a slave of the RSS because he wants to protect his chair. This is the reason why he fulfills each and every wish of the RSS," claimed Gandhi.

Condemning Advani for repeatedly calling Manmohan Singh a weak Prime Minister, Gandhi asked Advani whether he could take any decision without fear of the RSS.

She further accused Advani of rendering a "secular certificate" to Mohammad Ali Jinnah during his visit to Pakistan in 2005.

Advani, who was the BJP chief then, had resigned from his post following widespread criticism by the RSS and its allied bodies for his statement in Pakistan praising Mohammed Ali Jinnah.

She blamed the BJP for being "sympathetic towards terrorists" and pointed out that it was the NDA, which had permitted the release of terrorists during the 1999 Kandahar plane hijack episode.

Taking credit for handling the 26/11 Mumbai attacks case efficiently, Gandhi said the "diplomatic tackling of the Mumbai terror attacks by the UPA Government had compelled Pakistan to concede responsibility on the issue".

Noting the achievements of her party, Sonia asserted that the Congress had achieved a lot for the nation since its independence from British colonial rule.

She said that the Congress had taken initiatives in several development projects including modernisation of the country, nationalisation of banks, empowerment of women through Panchayat Raj institutions or signing the nuclear agreement. (ANI)