Cong trades charges with BJP over burqa purchase

Singh claimed the BJP had ordered 10,000 burqas from a shop in Indore,and paid Rs 42 lakh out of Rs 44.60 lakh.

An attempt to unveil BJPs brand of secularism left the Congress party red-faced on Tuesday. Alleging the BJP purchased 10,000 burqas from a shop in Indore,AICC general secretary Digvijaya Singh,flanked by senior leaders from the state,produced a bill the BJP later said was a forged one.

The allegations came on the eve of BJPs mega rally in Bhopal,where it plans to showcase its PM candidate Narendra Modi and project his growing acceptance among Muslims by making thousands of Muslims turn up.

The BJPs minority cell had announced that thousands of Muslims including women will attend the rally while the Congress insisted only fake Muslims will be brought because the minority community does not trust the Gujarat chief minister. Singh claimed the BJP had ordered 10,000 burqas from a shop in Indore,and paid Rs 42 lakh out of Rs 44.60 lakh. He said the BJP could not arrange skull caps and sourced thousands from Lucknow. He said the director of a real estate company,whose owner is close to CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan,made the payment.

The BJP countered the bill was fake. The owner of the shop said the bill had an old date and the word quotation had been removed. He said he neither sold burqas nor collected the money. The shop had changed location from the address mentioned in the bill long ago. Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam,addressing reporters in the evening in Bhopal,said anybody can go back on words under pressure from a ruling party.

Cyclone Montha: Schools closed, fishing activities suspended in Andhra, Odisha

India5 hr ago

A severe cyclonic storm, named Montha, is expected to make landfall along India's east coast between Odisha and Tamil Nadu on Tuesday. The Indian Meteorological Department has issued warnings for heavy rain and rough seas, with the potential for extremely heavy rain in certain areas.

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