Cong alleges BJP citing ”fake toolkit” to defame it, threatens legal action

PTI, May 18, 2021, 5:00 PM IST

New Delhi: The Congress on Tuesday accused the BJP of propagating a “fake toolkit” to defame it and said it would lodge a police complaint against the ruling party chief JP Nadda and its spokesperson Sambit Patra.

The opposition party alleged on its Twitter handle that instead of helping people during the COVID-19 pandemic, the BJP is stooping to low-level politics.

“BJP is propagating a fake ”toolkit” on ”COVID-19 mismanagement” and attributing it to AICC Research Department. We are filing an FIR for forgery against JP Nadda and Sambit Patra,” Congress” research cell head Rajeev Gowda said on Twitter.

“When our country is devastated by COVID, instead of providing relief, BJP shamelessly concocts forgeries,” he also alleged.

The opposition party was reacting after the BJP alleged that Congress wants to tarnish the image of the country and Prime Minister Narendra Modi by calling the new strain of the coronavirus the “India strain” or the “Modi strain”.

Citing a purported Congress toolkit, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Sambit Patra said according to the document, it is clear that the Congress extending help to the needy during the pandemic is “more of a public relations exercise with the help of friendly journalists and influencers than a soulful endeavor”.

However, Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate at a virtual press conference claimed that there is no such document as shown by the BJP spokesperson and the party was initiating legal action.

The party’s chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said, “Soon after the BJP forged the ”fake toolkit”, all its ”fake devotees” and ”friends in the media” came out to set the agenda.”

“We are going to file a case against BJP President JP Nadda and his spokespersons, but the truth about their misdeeds will not be left hidden,” he said.

Shrinate alleged that the government’s priorities are misplaced as it was resorting to such “tactics” instead of helping the COVID affected.

“We never expected that the national spokesperson of the BJP would resort to such blatant lies,” she said.

Meanwhile, Nadda hit out the Congress, alleging that the opposition party is a “master” at “dividing society and spewing venom against others”.

“India is seeing the Congress’ antics, while the nation is fighting COVID-19. I would urge Congress to go beyond ’Toolkit Models’ and do something constructive,” the BJP chief tweeted